Whispers On the Wind
by Dark Paine
Summary: After the defeat of Itachi, Naruto is able to return Sasuke's battered body to Konoha. Month's later on a mission, Sakura encounters a familiar face, igniting suppressed emotions. With new obstacles rising, what will happen to Team Seven? Eventual Sak/Nar
1. Chapter 1

**Title:**** Whispers On the Wind**_**  
**_**Written By: **_**Dark Paine**_**  
Beta:** CripticWolf  
**Summary:** The thought of Team Seven reuniting was something Sakura would never have believed to be possible. But when Sasuke returns after defeating Itachi, everything changes.

**Whispers On the Wind**

_The thought of becoming Team Seven once again was only a whisper on the wind._

"Push just a little more," urged the medic.

The woman lying on the bed, knees bent, threw her head back. "I don't know if I can! It hurts so badly!" she let out a gasp before her breathing came in short puffs.

The man next to the woman, her husband, squeezed her hand. "It's alright, just take small breaths and push just a little more." He then started to imitate the breathing pattern the doctors had showed them at the beginning of this two-hour labor session. He seemed to be sweating next to his wife, sometimes flinching by how hard she clenched his hand with her own.

The woman let out an ear-piercing scream, squeezing her eyes shut as she pushed.

"Here she comes," said the medic happily, reaching to grab the baby's head as it slowly came out.

With one final push from the mother, the baby was delivered with a small cry. The medic placed the baby on the mothers stomach, "Congratulations, you are now the parents of a little girl!"

The mother wept slightly with happiness while her husband cut the umbilical cord where the medic showed him. It was a beautiful sight and the medic felt tears prick at her eyes as she smiled behind her mask.

She stepped back while her assistants cleaned the baby and took care of the mother and left the room.

Stepping out, the medic threw out her gloves and untied her mask so she could breathe with more ease. She didn't realize just how hot it had been in that room until now that she was out in the hallway of the hospital building.

"Sakura."

The pink haired kunoichi wiped the small tear from her eye and turned to look at her teacher, Tsunade. She hadn't aged a bit, unsurprisingly.

"Yes, Tsunade-senpai?"

"You can go home now, it's late and you've got a mission tomorrow," said the older woman.

Sakura gave her a tired smile before she glanced at the clock. It was two in the morning and she had been at the hospital all day. It had been a long day.

"Alright Tsunade-senpai, I'll see you tomorrow."

Tsunade nodded her head and watched as Sakura walked down the hall to her office and retrieved her things. She noticed how relaxed her apprentice was despite her obvious fatigue. It was easier these days to not worry so much about Sakura.

In the beginning, after Sasuke had left, she had to watch Sakura like a hawk, which wasn't so much of a problem since she would train Sakura every day. It would usually keep Sakura's mind off of the missing nin, but when Sakura would go home, she would just begin to worry again.

It was like that for a year before the inevitable return of the onyx eyed nin. With the defeat of the Akatsuki and more importantly the older Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke had completed his long time mission and was returned bloodied and battered, having almost lost his life in the battle, to Konoha.

His recovery took many months and for a while Tsunade as well as the team of medics that worked on Sasuke wondered if he would ever fully recover. The time and effort they put into trying to save him was extensive when he first arrived. Many of the deep wounds he had sustained required hours of work to fix and stop the bleeding, both external and internal. Sakura in particular, made sure to be in the process in the very beginning until she knew that the others could handle the rest.

It had been hard for her student to watch her former teammate suffer so much and have so many injuries. Even though Sasuke had turned his back on Konoha for a while and caused the other members of Team Seven so much pain, both Naruto and Sakura still considered their team as family. And to see one of its members not only go through mental pain but physical as well, was hard for Sakura to watch.

And so when Sakura was dismissed from Sasuke's case and instead of turning to work at the hospital in overdrive she began taking missions left and right even after becoming ANBU. Tsunade realized that Sakura needed this so she did not stop her.

Tsunade knew, as did everyone else who was a friend of Sakura's that the kunoichi was only doing it to block the pain and suffering from Sasuke's departure when they were younger as well as his sudden return.

During the time where Sakura took consecutive missions as well as working at the hospital (which kept her from seeing her former teammate since being dismissed from his recovery), Sasuke had been closely watched and monitored for the first two months after reaching full recovery. He had spent many weeks getting back his motor skills, finding that it had been hard to walk at first and his left hand was very stiff compared to how it used it be, making it difficult to open and close. However, even through all difficulty he had succeeded until he had reached a full recovery.

He was an Uchiha after all. A clan that specialized in power and technique that would never let any member remain weak forever. His bloodline had a relentless thirst for perfection and dominance.

Being weak was out of the question for him.

Sighing, Tsunade crossed her arms under her large breasts and looked out the window of the Hokage Tower, viewing all of Konoha. Below she could see ninja as well as civilians walking and enjoying their day out together. It was a nice sight to see but Tsunade could not bring herself to smile, her thoughts turned to a much more serious issue concerning a certain Uchiha.

When the last remaining Uchiha left the hospital after two months, he was ordered to remain home in the Uchiha compound until further notice. He could not go on missions or even leave Konoha for any matter. Tsunade had made sure of it and had some of the members of ANBU take turns watching and making sure he followed her guidelines. After another two months of good behavior, she had allowed him to go to the training grounds, but never to train with another ninja.

The onyx eyed male listened and obeyed every rule Tsunade had set down for him. He never complained when he was told to stop training for the day and ordered back to his family compound, never talked back to any officer that watched him.

In fact, he rarely spoke at all.

Instead he would listen almost intently as to never miss what was said as he fixed an intense gaze upon the person of higher authority that told him what he could or could not do for that day. He was always silent and only rarely gave an affirmation in understanding. The boy was a mystery and it still surprised Tsunade that he did not put up a fight or try to kill any member of Konoha like he had tried to while away from his village.

The battles and struggles that he put his former teammates, teachers and comrades through were inexcusable. The pain they experienced was something that not everyone could forgive Sasuke for and so as punishment for not only betraying his comrades but also his village, Tsunade had punished him and put him on lock down. During this time discussions of his future remained with Tsunade and the nobles on whether he would be allowed to return completely or if he were to be executed for his treachery.

When Sasuke's former blonde haired teammate had heard of the discussions, he stormed into the Hokage's office demanding that Sasuke were to be given a second chance and pleaded for her to not let the raven-haired teen die. He went on to say that Sasuke had been brain washed by Orochimaru and that Sasuke was really a kind person and still his best friend. Naruto had been very vehement that there must be another way for Sasuke to be punished other than execution and urged her to convince the elders as so or else he would see them himself.

Knowing Naruto's passion for protecting those who meant the most to him, Tsunade had successfully negotiated with the elders to put Sasuke out of commission for a year to see how he would do starting from the bottom and working his way up. He would need to work hard to not only be a ninja again but to gain the respect of the Hokage as well as the elders. During this time in consideration were his attitude and cooperation as well as his overall behavior to all of her rules and that of the rules the elders had put into place.

And so now a year had passed since the return of Sasuke who had betrayed Konoha and had killed his older brother Itachi. It was time now to decide what Tsundae should do with the Uchiha and how she should proceed.

Turning from the window, Tsunade returned to sit at her desk and looked upon the scroll that now lay flat out on her desk and sighed. With the mysterious recent death of an Elder of Konoha, she had begun to feel drained as she tried so desperately not to let the information be leaked to outside villages. Only a select few knew of the malicious act against Konoha and she wanted it to remain that way.

* * *

As Sakura walked out of the hospital, she was met with the dark streets lit dimly by the fading lamps. There was a small amount of snow on the ground; it must have fallen while she was at work since there was none when she had come in. She felt a slight chill and wrapped her coat more tightly around her form.

Sakura herself loved the snow when she was younger and still did to this day. It had never got old until the snow started to mix with dirt and looked ugly and until that happened she would occupy herself by making snow men and having snow ball fights with her friends, especially her childhood friend Ino. Now that it was the end of winter, spring would reach Konoha in a few weeks time and Sakura was definitely looking forward to the warmer weather. The snow on the ground probably marked the last of the year.

She let her mind rest for a while, just letting herself find her way home robotically. She didn't even need to pay attention to what streets she took to get home these days, she just seemed to end up there one way or another.

But, on almost every day, she would glance up at a very familiar building like she did now.

The Uchiha compound.

Before, she would have to run past crying or avoid it altogether. On rare occasions she would sit outside and look at it, devoid of emotion and just stared.

That was when it was empty.

But since the return of her former teammate and knowing now there was an occupant inside, she would let herself pass by once after a long time of avoiding it, just to see if the single light would be on. It was the only source of a confirmation that Sasuke was inside, and not needing to see anymore, Sakura would continue on her way home.

When Sasuke, her childhood crush, had first left, a retrieval team had been assembled in hopes of returning the raven haired boy back to Konoha who had wished to defect in order to find Orochimaru. She herself had tried to stop him from leaving in the beginning but to no avail. The next day she had alerted officials who then told Tsunade what had happened. Immediately the team which included Naruto was put together.

Before their departure, Sakura had asked Naruto to bring back Sasuke, believing that only her blonde haired teammate could convince the Uchiha to return. Giving her his trademark smile and thumbs up, Naruto had gladly accepted while making it his lifetime promise to her.

The next time that Sakura saw Naruto however, was without their former teammate and in critical condition as a result of the battle that had ensued between Sasuke and the jinchūriki. Seeing him in bandages had broken her heart and she had stayed by his side as he recovered. When he had finally awakened he had apologized to her for not returning with Sasuke and it was at that moment that Sakura realized just how useless she had been during that time.

There was no doubt to herself or anyone else for that matter that she had been the weakest link on their team. She had always been protected by her teacher and her teammates. Everyone had done everything for her and as the tears fell from her eyes as she looked at Naruto who was covered in bandages, she vowed to never be useless ever again and that the next time they would get Sasuke, they would do it together.

And then things had changed yet again.

Naruto had gone off to train with Jiraiya to become more powerful and harness the strength of the kyuubi while Sakura had asked to be taken under the wings of Tsunade to be trained as a powerful medic nin, which her blonde haired teacher had gladly accepted.

Naruto and Sakura did not see each other for another three years.

During that time, Sakura had trained vigorously with Tsunade in order to become more powerful and more useful. She never again wanted to be the helpless twelve year old girl who had been a part of team seven, their weakest link. She no longer wanted to be a burden on her teammates, but instead she wanted to use all that she had in order to help them and protect those she cared for.

Overtime she had become a very notable and skilled medic that many sought out to be cured or healed by. When Naruto had returned to Konoha with newfound techniques and strength, even he was surprised at how much Sakura had changed and how cool she looked.

But the almost strange thing was that even Sakura thought Naruto looked cool. His appearance had changed and it seemed as if he had matured greatly. He no longer was the rambunctious child who pulled pranks on others nonstop. No, when he returned Naruto was taller, more muscular; more powerful and he even seemed to have a sense of calm about him.

Not long after they were reunited, both had agreed to go on yet another mission to bring Sasuke back to Konoha. Together with their new member Sai and new leader Yamato, they began to track down their former teammate.

This was no minor feet. Naruto faced a battle with Orochimaru that with the help from the kyuubi, he was able to defend against Orochimaru until he disappeared. Not only this, but their new teammate Sai had been an ally of the snake nin and had even betrayed their team. When their remaining team had reached Orochimaru's lair, they were able to find Sai and captured him for treachery.

Sakura had always known that there was something a little off about Sai. He was rather emotionless and gave off a weird vibe whenever she looked at him. No matter how hard she tried to accept him as a teammate, she couldn't. He could never give her a reason to and it was too strange to even think about it. No one could replace Sasuke's position on team seven and both she and Naruto considered his place on their team only temporary.

What did surprise Sakura however, was Sai's sudden interest in the relationship between Naruto and Sasuke. When the emotionless nin had learned why Naruto was so adamant about bringing Sasuke back to Konoha, it amazed Sakura when he had decided to actually help them. What they had once thought his secret mission to bury Sasuke had turned to Sai changing his mind instead to help protect the bond that Naruto and Sasuke shared.

This came to be realized when their team finally came in contact with Sasuke. After three long years of training, both Sakura and Naruto were able to lay their eyes upon their teammate who had disappeared from Konoha.

Like Naruto, Sasuke had also become taller and more muscular but he still sported the same short black spiked hair. He clothes had also changed, instead of his blue shirt and white shorts, he now wore a white long sleeved shirt that opened in the front to reveal a toned chest, black pants with a blue clothe that started mid-stomach and went down to his knees and a purple belt that tied in a bow much like the one Orochimaru wore around his waist.

They had both waited for this day to come for a very long time and it was their chance to yet again try and return to Konoha with their teammate.

A battle quickly ensued and all members were swiftly shown that Sasuke too had endured rigorous training during these three years and had become considerably stronger. It seemed almost effortless for him to injure both Naruto and Sai. It was then that Sakura, who had not been hit by Sasuke's chidori, channeled her chakra into her fist and ran towards the sharingan user. She had vowed that she would not be useless this time and she planned to act on it. Her childhood feelings for Sasuke and her seemingly undying need to please him had disappeared when she had vowed to Naruto that together they would bring their teammate home.

The way he looked at her as she approached him was almost chilling enough to stop her in her tracks. His eyes that once held some sort of emotion, now looked on at her as if she were a mere flea in his way. She watched him grasp his sword and raise it, chakra all the while being channeled though the steel, but she did not stop.

She promised herself as well as Naruto that this time, they would bring him home.

It did not matter to her that he stared with the intent to kill as she ran towards him and got ready to shove her chakra filled fist into his face. She wanted to help, she _had_ to help.

The sudden appearance of her temporary team leader however, stopped her. She watched, horrified as Yamato placed himself in front of her just as Sasuke's blade came down to pierce him in the chest, the chidori that was being channeled through it, electrified her leader. He was only able to push it out of his chest after using his wood release. At which point he even tried to encase Sasuke in his wood locking wall but the sharingan wielder escaped just as quickly as the wall was formed around him demonstrating yet again how strong he was.

So strong that they had failed once again.

Sakura could only watch on helplessly as Sasuke was joined by Kabuto and Orochimaru before he could deal out a blow so powerful, it would have killed everyone that resided in the large crater below him. He was only stopped by Orochimaru and the explanation of why Sasuke should let them live in order to destroy the Akatsuki members from Kabuto. At that, Sasuke pondered for a moment before letting his hand fall to his side and disappeared with Orochimaru and Kabuto, their bodies vanishing in flames.

It was at that point that Sakura started to experience resentment and anger towards the Uchiha. She resented him for engaging in battle and insisting that there were no bonds between them, that he had severed them all when he left Konoha. She was angry that he continued to resist their efforts, seemingly ignorant to their sincere feelings and had almost killed the people that cherished him the most. Most importantly, she resented the person that Sasuke was becoming. What they had worked so hard for in the beginning when they first been put together was now gone. They were not a team who looked out for one another; instead Sasuke was trying to turn them into enemies going so far as to say that either Naruto or he would die in their final battle.

Defeated, they had returned once again to Konoha empty handed and the strenuous training once again commenced with the help of Kakashi. They took mission after mission and Sakura forced herself to progress in ability, sometimes even joining other teams on missions and she found herself soon allowed to participate in ANBU operations along the side of Neji. S-rank and A-rank missions as well as working in the hospital took up most of her time then and even now.

As time went on and while Naruto trained with both Jiraiya and Kakashi, she had heard bits of news about the whereabouts of the missing Uchiha. When news broke of the defeat of Orochimaru by the raven-haired teen, Sakura had been healing a patient at the hospital. Shizune had told her what had happened and that the Hokage was already aware. Sasuke had apparently turned on his teacher who had become weaker than him just before Orochimaru could take over his body.

Many more months, missions and medical duties passed before Sakura had heard about Sasuke again. When she did hear about him, it was something surprising. The man that Sasuke had vowed to get revenge upon since he was a child was now dead by his hands after a long and overwhelming battle of their sharingan which left behind tremendous destruction. By the time leaf shinobi had arrived at the scene, Itachi's body had been burned beyond recognition and Sasuke was nowhere to be found.

That was until his body showed up at the gates of the Hidden Leaf village on the arm of Naruto out of the blue a couple of months after the battle. He was covered in deep wounds and burn marks when Sakura saw him for the first time in months being rushed in on a medical bed by fellow medics. Almost without hesitation and forgetting her bitterness towards her former teammate, she too had joined the team to save the Uchiha and stayed until he was no longer in critical condition, when she knew that the others could handle it.

It would be the only time she had willingly looked upon his face before taking a month long ANBU mission with Neji. Her bitterness for Sasuke returned when she left that medical room. Why was it that it took for him to be so badly wounded in order to return to Konoha? If he had just returned with them all those months ago he would not have almost lost his life and be lying in a medical bed right then as she had walked down the hall to tend to another patient.

Going on an extensive and dangerous mission with Neji was exactly what she needed to keep her mind off of the newly returned ninja. Her faithful ANBU companion always worked well with her and commanded her full attention. He would never allow any sort of slip up to occur during their missions, her mind could not afford to be somewhere else. In the end it was a difficult mission but went off without a hitch.

And so after returning back to Konoha a month after leaving just subsequent to when Sasuke had been brought in on a bed, Sakura made sure to avoid the hospital and instead went straight to the Hokage's office to request another mission as soon as possible. Her request was granted and she was sent off yet again on a mission that lasted two months. It was only upon her return that she had learned of the Uchiha being released from the hospital a month after she had left, and that now was confined to his family compound.

It seemed as though at the time that a slight weight had been lifted off of her shoulders and now she found that she had no reason to avoid the hospital any longer. After taking two days rest from the mission, she made her way to the hospital and continued to work nonstop almost every day of the week unless Tsunade has specifically requested that she go on another ANBU mission or to take at least one extra day off. She had done this for a year, spent the majority of her time either on special or regular missions or at the hospital and only spending a few days out of the month at her own apartment.

Besides his release from the hospital, Sakura knew nothing else of Sasuke's condition. She never asked about him and no one freely told her just what was happening with her former teammate. It seemed as if all of her colleagues who usually liked to gossip, deliberately avoided the subject. It must have been because of the influence her teacher had over them. She could be very scary after all.

Now standing in front of her apartment door, she sighed. Tomorrow she was to go on a mission with Neji that would last a few days. To do what, she did not know yet.

Her hand reached out to grab the doorknob but stopped.

Today she had helped to give birth to a human being.

Tomorrow she might have to take the life of one.

* * *

The last mission Sakura had been on lasted two and a half weeks. She fought against her enemies every day without pause. Her ANBU squad had to assassinate four different groups of rogue ninjas that were wrecking havoc on villages and posed a threat to the Leaf Village. It had taken some time to find them but once they were found, they had no chance of escape.

When she had finally returned back home, she had only minor injuries that consisted of a few cuts and scrapes but nothing serious. After the quick medical evaluation in the hospital that she was required to go under even though she herself was an experienced medic, she had left the hospital. On her way back to her apartment she had been caught by Naruto who then insisted that he take her out to the Ichiraku as a celebration for her successful mission.

She could not deny her friend who insisted on treating her even though she was tired. So, side by side they had walked to Naruto's all time favorite dining place. She couldn't help but notice how much Naruto had changed again as they walked down the dirt road. In between her missions she rarely saw her blonde haired friend. It was ignorant to think that during the time Sakura kept herself occupied that Naruto would sit home and do nothing. No, instead he too had begun training even harder than ever before and took missions with other teams to advance his abilities. Like herself, he too was a part of the Hidden Leaf's ANBU and even though it was normal for teams to be sent out, Naruto would sometimes opt to go out alone on missions. Sakura could only count on one hand how many times she and Naruto had been put on the same ANBU squad and that had only been in the beginning. Now however, Tsunade liked to mix and match people in order to find complete balance depending on the missions and their individual difficulty.

They would talk about what was going on in their lives, what kind of missions they had taken and even debated on the type of mission would be their next. As they ate, she would steal glances at him and notice how much more defined his features seemed to be since the last time she saw him as he happily chatted with her. He was always careful not to mention Sasuke anymore in their talks even if he had seen the Uchiha or not. Naruto had come to learn after a short time that Sakura no longer had the interest to know such things and so he made sure to never mention it again. As a result, their conversations remained more positive and enjoyable for both of them.

What never changed about him was the way he would greet her with a smile though. The way he looked at her with kindness and warmth that seemed to never waver even if she returned after killing multiple people only a few days or even possibly a few hours before their eyes met. Sometimes Sakura felt that no matter how many lives stained her hands he would always greet her in such a way without judgment.

Now, as she stood in the Hokage's office dressed head to toe in traditional ANBU gear with Neji beside her, she smiled under her mask as they waited for their Hokage to give them the details to their mission.

Maybe after this was completed she would treat Naruto to some ramen? He had surprisingly paid up the last time and it was only fair that she return the favor. She could see him now, stuffing his face with ramen and going on about his love for the simple dish.

When the door to the Hokage's office swung open both Sakura and Neji straightened their stance and waited as the leader of their village stood behind her desk and pulled a scroll from beneath her robes and threw it to Sakura who caught it.

Thinking it was their mission scroll she began to open it but Tsunade's voice stopped her.

"You are forbidden to open that scroll." The words were quick and sharp, a direct order.

Quickly rolling the scroll tightly, Sakura placed it in the pouch that sat on her lower back, "Yes Hokage."

Neji shifted his weight from beside the pink haired kunoichi. "Since you are not giving us a mission scroll, I presume we are delivering it to someone specific," came his smooth deduction.

Tsunade nodded her head. "You are correct Hyuuga. No one must lay eyes on this scroll other than the Godaime Kazekage himself. This is highly classified information that I need you to give him and only him. You must be seen neither entering, nor leaving Sunagakure either."

Both ANBU members nodded their heads in affirmation.

* * *

Getting to the Land of Wind was no problem to Sakura and Neji whatsoever. Their speed allowed them to arrive only three days after their departure from Konoha and they had been able to remain completely unseen to the villages and their unknowing ninja.

It was always an asset to have a Hyuuga on a team. Their Byakugan was able to see incoming threats or inconveniences further up ahead of them and Neji's ability to do so was the major reason their timing had been so good.

When both Neji and Sakura stood in front of the Kazekage, they watched as he read over the scroll Sakura had handed over. It was hard to guess what Tsunade had written since there was no expression that crossed Gaara's face as he read it over thoroughly.

Silence filled the air in the room that the two members of ANBU and the leader of the village resided in. Before their arrival, Gaara had made sure that no one was to step foot in his office. He had received word from Leaf that the official scroll was on its way and he knew how crucial it was that their talks were kept in complete secrecy for now. So as a precaution only he himself was allowed to enter and leave his office, anyone else was forbidden to do so.

Sakura had noticed upon arrival the seemingly less guarded tower but she knew better. This Kazekage was more than capable of defending himself against the many offenders and enemies.

Soon, the sound of brush strokes filled her ears and she turned her attention once again to see Gaara writing on a scroll to respond to the one Tsunade had written. It did not take long for him to scribble down whatever he wanted to say before reading it over again and rolling it up. When finished he stood and walked towards Sakura and Neji.

"This is to be given straight to your Hokage. No one is to view its contents." He spoke. His order was much the same as the one they had received from Tsunade and his words were spoken in almost the same manner however his seemed more deadly. Holding her hand open, Sakura watched as Gaara placed the new scroll in her hand before placing it safely in her back pouch. For some reason the weight of the scroll seemed to be heavier than usual. A seemingly deep feeling of foreboding and importance came over Sakura as she thought about just how important this scroll might be. It seemed as if something dangerous and significant was brewing between these two nations.

He then turned to look at Neji, "I will make sure that it will be easier for the both of you to leave the village. You are dismissed now."

With a jerk of their heads they quickly left the presence of the Kazekage and began their journey back to Konoha. Like Gaara had said, it was easier to leave than it was to arrive. He must have summoned all of the ninja to different posts or could have possibly called a meeting in order to give them free reign in their departure. Nevertheless it took them a day in a half before they were completely out and ended up stopping for a rest a few miles from the outskirts of the Land of Fire. They would reach Konoha in another day and a half after resting for awhile.

So, as they both sat hidden in the trees, Sakura let her back rest against the trunk as she balanced her weight on the branch she rested on. Closing her eyes behind her mask, she let her head fall back to rest against the tree. The importance of the scroll that she carried did not leave her ever since they had left. The sense of responsibility only grew and she wondered just what the contents of the scroll held.

Opening her eyes, she spotted her teammate on a different branch a few feet in front of her and further up. She knew he could hear her though when she began to speak to him.

"Neji?" she called to him and watched as his masked face turned towards her.

Even with the distance and the mask on his face Sakura could still make out his silver eyes that seemed to always penetrate her soul. In the begging it took her a while to get used to seeing his eyes so often when the first began to take missions together but after time she did not get the chills whenever his eyes landed on her. No, they had spent way too many missions together and he had saved her too many times for her to still feel nervous or unaccustomed.

They had become quite the team together, relying on each other for their own special techniques that benefitted both of them.

"What is it Sakura? Do you sense something?" he asked, voice slightly muffled from behind the mask.

Leaning forward the pink haired kunoichi let her legs dangle on either side of the branch before shaking her head. "It's just that something has been bugging me ever since we left the village hidden in the sand." She paused a moment and looked to her right before returning her gaze back to her partner. "Do you think….that there will be a war? This mission that we were given had two leaders of a village that wanted no one to know of this scroll other than themselves…and I just can't get the ominous feeling out of my system. It's almost like something big is about to happen."

She watched to see him contemplate her words on the branch where he resided. Being a member of the Hyuuga clan had taught him many years of discipline and to consider his words and actions truthfully and in all seriousness. When he did speak, Sakura made sure to listen meticulously to his words.

"I would not presume to go that far just yet. However, war can start at any time if there is a large uprising or attack against another village. Although there are no signs of that yet, it can happen at any time. In this case on the other hand I believe our Hokage would try everything to prevent a war while still investigating the murder. We can only wait to see what happens."

Sakura leaned back against the tree once again and let his words sink in. yes, he was right. An unpredicted war could start at any time between any village if one had the need to try and take over. With this new secret and malicious attack against the elders of Konoha however, it put a bad taste in her mouth. She knew Tsunade was investigating the crime and it had not been ruled out that a leaf shinobi had done the deed but neither had a shinobi sent by another village.

A noise caught her attention, effectively bringing her out of her thoughts as both she and Neji stood up with kunai in hand.

"Wait! Don't attack me!" yelled a rough voice from below that Sakura recognized. Putting her kunai away, she dropped down to the ground followed silently by her teammate.

Kneeling down in front of the furry animal that had found them, she looked him straight in the eyes. "Pakkun, what are you doing here?"

The small brown pug gestured to his back with his head. "Tsunade sent me on an emergency mission to find you and give you this scroll."

Spotting the scroll, Sakura hurriedly removed it from the canines back and opened it.

_ANBU Squad 1:_

_Squad 3 is in need of a medic. _

_Amegakure._

"That is the Squad that Shino is on," voiced Neji's from behind Sakura's shoulder just as she destroyed the scroll.

She turned to look at the taller man. "Do you know who else is on his team?"

He shook his head.

Sakura's gaze turned down to the pug once again. "Tell Tsunade that we are on our way to assist them now."

They were lucky to have been caught by Pakkun while in the area between the Lands of Wind and Fire. They were closer to Amegakure from where they were compared to if they had returned all the way to Konoha and received this order. They would be able to reach Shino quickly this way.

"Lady Tsunade said they should be just on the outskirts of a village located a couple of miles from the border."

In one swift motion their small meeting dispersed. Sakura and Neji headed to the Village Hidden in Rain while Pakkun went back to report to the Hokage.

It wasn't often that Sakura would receive an order like this. Something must have certainly gone wrong with the ANBU team that they were going to aid. Had the other squad been ambushed? Or had they engaged in a battle overestimating their opponent?

If Neji was right and Shino was on that squad, then something horrible must have happened. The ninja famous for his bug techniques was one of the more dangerous and skilled of the ninja from leaf. He was still a mystery from the day Sakura met him until even today but she knew how he was able to execute missions meticulously by pushing himself a few steps ahead of his opponent.

For Shino to be injured on such a mission it wouldn't be much of a stretch in thinking this enemy to be quite skillful, to say the least.

Sakura could only hope that Shino was still alive by the time they reached him.

* * *

The land, in which the Village Hidden in Rain was located, was in an unnamed country. Although receiving its name from the constant rainy climate, not much was known about the village for the sheer fact that it was heavily guarded. Shinobi or civilians alike that were eventually allowed to enter such a village were only able to do so after going through extensive security checks. After gaining access, visitors were then held under constant surveillance whether or not they knew it. It seemed though that the border of the country was not as heavily guarded as the village itself, which proved to be a quite the benefit for both Sakura and Neji who quickly slipped past unsuspecting villagers and into the forest.

On the border of the country, there were many smaller villages that were considerably less guarded than the main village. There was no doubt in Sakura's mind however that they were all connected and still housed shinobi for protection, however on the other hand Sakura knew that it would not be as strict or heavy as in the Village Hidden in Rain.

As the raindrops poured down from the skies above them, Sakura and Neji made their way through the trees in search of their comrades that were in need of help. Her hair now clung to her neck and mask as well as the soaked traditional ANBU outfit to her body. If she had not been so skillful in her attention to keep the chakra flow to her feet as well, she would have fallen off the slippery tree branches long ago. Everything in this country was soaked and one wrong move could easily spell disaster.

Sakura followed swiftly behind Neji as he used his byakugan to locate Shino and his squad. With the help of the strong gusts of wind, their movements were naturally covered and unnoticeable.

"Up ahead!" she heard her teammate yell over the strong winds back to her.

They stopped in the trees to survey the area, only a few feet away from their fallen comrade who was now visible to both Sakura and Neji. He was breathing heavily from what Sakura could see as he alone leaned against the trunk of a tree, blood dripping from both his arms and parts of his chest.

No team in sight.

"It's clear over here," Sakura announced to her teammate. She had begun to mentally and physically prepare herself for the amount of chakra she would need in order to quickly and sufficiently heal their fellow leaf nin. Although there were different villages nearby in either direction that they could go to, Sakura deemed it would be better to heal him here. She didn't want to take her chances going into a village and then being found out they were Leaf ANBU.

"Over here as well," answered Neji before dropping down to the ground, Sakura following suite. Without hesitation both of them approached Shino, Sakura knelt on the ground beside him and assessed his wounds.

"What happened to you Susumu? What about your squad?" asked Neji who stood before his cousin's former teammate from when they were younger. He did not address Shino by his true name; instead he as well as everyone a part of the leaf ANBU were given different names to be called by in order to conceal their true identities.

Gathering chakra into her hands, Sakura began to push the flow into the open wounds that were on Shino's chest. It seemed as though someone had cut him with a very large and sharp sword. Thankfully it had not cut into any major organs from what Sakura had evaluated. She could feel his chest vibrate as he began to speak.

"We were ambushed, my teammate and I," he coughed before continuing. "He disappeared for a while and I was left to fight off three of the ninja that had landed upon us."

Sakura could feel the anger radiating off of Neji from beside her.

"Who is your teammate?" he asked heatedly while looking down. His rare eyes glanced over every cut that had been placed on the insect wielding ninja. They were not friends so to speak, but Neji was very adamant about the safety and protection of his fellow leaf shinobi. And from what Sakura had seemed to guess what his teammate had truly did in her mind, Neji was probably on the same track.

Keeping one hand over the cut on Shino's chest, Sakura moved her other to channel chakra into the wounds on his arm. They were healing much better and faster than she would have thought. It was a good thing that the shinobi that had ambushed him didn't use poison or else this would have been a totally different ordeal.

"Ryuu is my teammate…we were not assigned on a team with anyone else…it was just he and I…" spoke Shino slowly.

Both Sakura and Neji turned to look at each other. She had never heard of the alias 'Ryuu' since she became ANBU and she was almost positive that Neji had not either. Pushing more chakra into Shino's body, Sakura's eyes narrowed behind her mask.

So a newbie had gotten scared while on a mission and abandoned his teammate?

"Where the hell is your teammate?" growled the pink haired kunoichi behind gritted teeth. To think that someone from the leaf could have done this to their teammate made her livid, especially since it was a member of ANBU.

"He-"

The bug wielding shinobi was cut off when an almost inaudible sound was heard from behind Sakura. Almost instantly the warm body that once stood beside her disappeared and without slowing the flow of chakra to her hands, Sakura turned to look behind her at the intruder who now had Neji's sword against his neck.

"I'm right here," came the confident and unwavering voice from behind the traditional ANBU mask. It seemed as though he did not care that there was one of the most deadly and sharpest weapons against one of the most vulnerable parts of his body.

Sakura's eyes opened slightly in astonishment as a sense of apprehension seemed to grow in the pit of her stomach. The intruder was dressed in the same attire as she and Neji as well as Shino; the black shoes and pants, black skin tight shirt underneath the white armor. A small black tattoo in the shape of a swirl also adorned his right shoulder, signifying his membership of ANBU. From where she knelt she could not see his eyes, instead she could see his pale skin that was visible, not covered and the jet black hair that had a familiar spike to it. As she looked at him from head to toe, eyes wavering here or there on the small cuts and bruises, the feeling in the pit of her stomach seemed to grow larger.

Neji's hand on the sword tightened. "So now you decide to show yourself after abandoning your teammate? You bastard!"

Sakura watched intently as the raven haired man turned to look at Neji, a small cut from the sword appeared on his neck but he paid no heed to it. "Abandon?" he seemed to laugh. "I went to finish of the others, _Daiki._ Should I have let them get away instead?"

She heard her teammate growl from behind her as she turned her head back to Shino. His wounds had healed a great deal from when she first started, but she could not afford to use all of her chakra to heal him. Reaching back into the small pack, she grabbed bandages and began to wrap them around his wounds quickly but efficiently. Having many years of training and experience behind her, wrapping wounds was like clockwork.

"Thank you Ayaka," she heard Shino's bent over form whisper.

Slightly smiling behind her mask, Sakura could only give him a reassuring pat on his shoulder. "We are leaf shinobi, I will always help you. You will be alright Susumu."

After the bandages were secure, Sakura stood up and faced both of the shinobi that were still in the position she last saw them in.

"What do you think the Hokage would have said if I had just let them run off?" she heard the newcomer sneer and it emitted another growl of frustration out from her teammates' lips.

He was right; it would have been completely and utterly unacceptable if he had let the enemy shinobi escape. It would have brought shame to him as a member of ANBU for letting emotions get in the way for completely abandoning his mission to instead stay with his teammate, to choose his teammate over the mission.

However, there was still some level of respect and comradery that resided in the Leaf ANBU squads where they were expected to protect one another for the duration of the mission.

But it seemed, as Sakura assessed while she walked towards the one they called Ryuu who gave her the most uncomfortable feeling in her stomach, that by judging from how few wounds Ryuu had compared to Shino that he had ultimately abandoned his teammate. Instead of working together to destroy the enemy, it seemed as if Ryuu here thought he was so good and talented that he would take care of all of them while using Shino as a decoy, unbeknownst to himself.

The uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach seemed to dissipate as anger filled her as she balled her fist. Both men that had been previously engrossed in a war of words looked at the pink haired kunoichi as she approached before stopping right in front of Ryuu.

Up close he was a good half foot taller than her and she had to turn her head up slightly in order to talk directly to him. She could not see his eyes no matter how hard she looked into the holes in his mask. They seemed like dark depths that held no feeling whatsoever that never ended. Was there even a person behind that mask?

It was surprising to her that this shinobi belonged to Konoha; that such a person belonged to her precious village.

"Were you always this disrespectful to your teammates and superiors, _Ryuu_?" she said his name with such malice that even her teammates opal gaze turned towards her in surprise. "Have you always used your teammates as unknowing decoys?"

The light laugh that she heard from the man in front of her made her eyes widen as chakra began to flow into her fist. She watched as the masked face in front of her bent down only to slowly rise to look at her, finally allowing her to see his eyes.

His eyes that had bled into Sharingan.

Realization hit Sakura like a brick wall and for a moment her breath hitched as she could only hear the sound of her heart beating in her chest.

The man she had avoided for months, that had abandoned their village for _years_ was standing right before her, only a few feet away. She would have never thought that he would ever wear the same garb as she. He had tried to kill many ninja from Konoha, including herself and Naruto…and now he was a member of Konoha's most elite and trusted organizations?

"I believe the Hokage had told me your name was _Ayaka,_" her alias rolled off his tongue and she knew in an instant he had long recognized her by his tone. Damn her pink hair.

"It's been a while, hasn't it _Sakura_?"

Her eyes narrowed at the sound of her real name. Before she could think her fisted hand swung back before connecting powerfully with the mans face. Just hearing her name being spoken from _this_ mans lips after so long brought back memories from their childhood and all the events leading up to this moment. Everything he had done was engraved in her mind and she had never forgotten anything.

All was silent as Sakura stood, arm extended with her fist connecting with Ryuu's face while Neji's sword still rested against the neck of the new shinobi.

Suddenly there was an audible crack as lines spread from the center of where Sakura's fist had connected. Pieces of the mask began to fall to the ground, revealing only one red eye.

In a split second the form in front of her disappeared into the wind in the form of crows.

"That was-" began Neji in slight amazement.

"Sasuke."

* * *

Hello everyone!

Thanks so much for stopping by and reading, I hope you enjoyed! I've updated the chapter because apparently things have changed on here that I didnt know about so please excuse the somewhat messy start. I'm excited to hear what you think ^^

Please review, it really does fire up my excitement to write :D

Until next time!


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Whispers On the Wind_**  
**_**Written By: **Dark Paine**  
Beta:** CripticWolf  
**Summary:** The thought of Team Seven reuniting was something Sakura would never have believed to be possible. But when Sasuke returns after defeating Itachi, everything changes.

**Whispers On the Wind**

Squad one stood silently in the forest as both of its members looked upward into the trees in search of the man they both knew to be close by. Susumu, who was the member of squad three and more commonly known as Shino, was still leaning safely against the trunk of the tree.

Sheathing his sword, Neji turned to look at Sakura. Even he was silently unnerved by their new discovery of the Uchiha. He, like Sakura, had always thought Sasuke would remain in his family compound for many years. To see him now made him wonder just what the Hokage had been thinking. He could conjure up only a few reasonable ideas in his mind.

Looking at his teammate on the other hand, he had no idea what could possibly be going through her mind. She stood a few feet away from him, noticeably tense and emotionally rattled with one of her hands still clenched against her side. He could see by her deep breaths that she was trying to calm her racing heart and he gave her a few moments before glaring into the trees once again.

"Come out Ryuu. I don't need to use my byakugan to know that you are in the trees." Stepping in front of Sakura to shield her from the incoming shinobi, Neji folded his arms against his chest.

Wordlessly, the dark haired ninja dropped from the trees in front of them silently but his appearance did not go unnoticed. Sakura's head had snapped up to look over Neji's shoulder and upon seeing the darker form of her former teammate Sasuke, she tensed.

Sensing her unease, Neji turned his head. "Go get Susumu."

His order brought the kunoichi's mind promptly back into the game, had he not done so, there was no telling what Sakura would've done. She felt like crying; breaking down and yelling under the torrent of unwelcome emotions welling inside her. The only thing supporting her composure at the moment was Neji's companionable presence from where he stood in front of her. Thankful for him, she nodded before quickly walking over to Shino.

_Get it together Sakura._ She urged herself.

Turning his head, Neji regarded the Uchiha.

"We're heading back to Konoha. We'll let the Hokage deal with you."

* * *

Their journey back had been relatively easy. Neji lead the group with Sasuke trailing behind him while Sakura assisted Shino in the rear of their combined squad. They were able to slip back over the border to Konohagakure while keeping their pace consistent even with their injured teammate. Momentarily they had stopped a few times to make sure that Shino's wounds were still in good condition and hadn't opened up during their trek back to Konoha.

It was always a nice sight for Sakura to see her beloved village and to know that she was finally home. She may not spend very long in this village these days, but the pink-haired Kunoichi still considered it to be her safe haven. She knew she'd always be able to relax here and yearned for the sanctity her cozy little apartment. Yet to know, as she glanced over at Sasuke upon their arrival late that night, that he'd soon be out of her sight relieved the heavy feeling that had being weighing against her chest the entire trip back.

Feeling slightly more at ease, Sakura followed the others while helping Shino toward the Hokage's tower. They went unnoticed by the villagers as they ran across the rooftops until they finally reached their destination.

The room was pitch black when they appeared in the Hokage's office as a group. They stood silently and waited in the large room, knowing that their village leader would not be far behind. Even though Tsunade detested doing paperwork, the missions that both squads had been given to complete were very important and they knew she wouldn't miss it.

A sudden ignition of a candle announced the Hokage's arrival as it filled the room with a golden hue, other candles surrounding the office lighting up as well to give the group perfect visibility to their surroundings. Sakura could now see the forms of Neji and Sasuke clearly beside that of Shino. She still had the bug shinobi's weight upon her as they waited silently in the now illuminated office, the unknowing village sleeping soundly below them.

"It's good to see you all back in one piece," came a voice from behind them.

The men turned to look at the woman but Sakura was used to her shishou appearing out of thin air and kept her eyes trained on the desk in front of her. Her eyes only moved when she saw the blonde haired woman come into view behind her desk.

"Thank you squad one for assisting the members of squad three," Tsunade's eyes glanced over every form in the room before resting on Sakura. "Shizune will take things from here."

The weight that Sakura had been supporting throughout their long journey home was finally lifted as the other dark haired female appeared next to her and the injured bug-nin. Moving one of Shino's arms around her neck, one of Shizune's own delicately found placement around his waist and she silently lead him out of the room and to the hospital, closing the door behind her.

Even with the extra weight gone, Sakura could still feel the pressure on her neck as she straightened her body, however there were more important things that needed to be discussed now and Sakura ignored the urge to massage the aching soreness.

"Squad one, I would like you both to wait outside while I talk to Ryuu."

Sakura's eyes widened slightly at the order. She would have thought her shishou would have talked to all of them at the same time but apparently she had been wrong. The tone in which the order was given was calm but Sakura knew better. The small hint of anger that had escaped with Tsunades words had not gone by unnoticed and so the kunoichi and her teammate nodded their heads before swiftly exiting the room. Outside they were left to wonder silently the words being exchanged with burning curiosity as they leaned against the opposite wall of the dimly lit hallway.

With nothing else to do but wait Sakura took the opportunity to work out the kinks in her neck as she let out a soft sigh.

"Are you alright?" asked her partner from beside her as he placed one of his hands on her shoulder.

Letting her arm drop to her side she turned to him, "I think I'm alright now. There are things that I am going to have to ask the Hokage later though." She paused momentarily as she felt the warmth of his hand leave her shoulder. "Thank you for before."

The Hyuuga nodded his head before turning his gaze back to the door of the Hokage's office. The sudden slamming of a hand against wood broke their momentary silence and Sakura's green eyes quickly moved to the door also.

She was half tempted to place her ear against the solid object that separated them to try and figure out just what was going on inside, but she knew that would look too unprofessional, not to mention childish. Sakura was well aware that her shishou could become loud and boisterous sometimes but she also knew that Tsunade was more than capable of keeping things she deemed private exactly that. She knew the Hokage was deliberately keeping her voice down. After all she had already made it clear that she didn't want them witness the confrontation by dismissing them in the first place.

So, helpless and anxious the attendants outside remained still, left to wonder exactly what was going on behind that thick door.

Sakura knew that once she and her teacher were alone, she would ask just what was going on concerning a certain Sharingan user. In a sense she felt like her teacher had betrayed her by not letting her know that Sasuke was now a part of ANBU in the first place, even sending her to aid his squad knowing she would be helping his team and unknowingly _have_ to confront him. On the other hand, Sakura had herself made it obvious that anything concerning that particular man should not be discussed with her. She had simply not wished to know anything, long ago realizing the need to move on with her own life.

The door to Tsunade's office opened abruptly and the blonde appeared. "Come in." she ordered briskly, not waiting for them to move first and took her place once again behind her large desk. She watched intently as the two members of ANBU moved to stand in front of her.

Neji was the first to enter, followed closely by Sakura who glanced over to unfortunately see the quiet form of the Uchiha still in the room. She would have liked it if he had disappeared from her sight but knew that was simply not going to happen now. Seeing him again like this made her uncomfortable and so she hoped that whatever Tsunade had to say would be quick and to the point. All she wanted to do right now was to go home and relax.

"I have discussed with Ryuu the repercussions of his actions today," began the Hokage as she glanced at both Sakura and Neji. "And he has accepted full responsibility. He's also given his word that it will not happen again." Her tone at the end seemed to be a scoff, almost as if she herself didn't believe what she was saying or the promise the Uchiha made.

Her eyes pinned onto on the person in question and narrowed. "Isn't that correct?"

Wordlessly the Uchiha nodded his head once but did not speak, causing Tsunade to release a small almost pained sigh.

"I will be discussing what happens to you _Ryuu_ with the council tomorrow. You are dismissed, for now, but I expect a full mission report tomorrow afternoon," she finished.

Sakura could see the raven haired shinobi incline his head the slightest bit before a figure appeared behind him unexpectedly. He was dressed in the traditional ANBU garb and had the mask of a bird placed over his face. Cropped brown hair was visible as well as slightly tanned skin from where the outfit cut off at certain places. It stunned Sakura slightly to think that anyone else was up and awaiting orders from the Hokage but after glancing at her teacher she knew there must have been a special purpose for this member of ANBU to appear.

"Please escort Ryuu back home Masado," came the Hokage's firm command.

'Masado' placed his hand lightly on Sasuke's shoulder and bowed more formally than the previous. "Yes, Hokage."

Both forms disappeared swiftly from the room. Sakura's eyes that had once studied the place where her former teammate and brown haired ninja once stood moved slowly to her teacher. She was thankful that he was gone now and felt her body relax significantly. She felt almost at peace.

"Now then," began Tsunade when she looked sharply to Neji, "I assume that you were both able to make it in and out of the Hidden Sand Village with little interference?"

He nodded. "Yes, we were able to deliver the scroll in secrecy thanks to the Kazekage's assistance. It seemed as if he purposefully dismissed any guarding shinobi to grant us fast access to his office."

A slight grin graced the Hokage's lips. "I thought he would do as much. He is quite a smart Kazekage indeed." She looked between the two shinobi standing in front of her. "Did you receive anything from him?"

This time it was Sakura who nodded in confirmation and after reaching into her small pack, walked to the desk and placed the presented scroll in front of Tsunade. "He gave this to us shortly after arriving. He wanted you to have it as soon as we came back." She walked back to her place next to her teammate and watched as the Hokage looked down at the scroll before picking it up. Her eyes glanced over a few carefully written characters as she leaned back into her chair before quickly closing it and placed it in her robes. Her expression took on a more serious look now.

"Good work. Like Ryuu, I expect mission reports from the both of you by tomorrow afternoon," she stared pointedly at both Sakura and Neji who nodded their heads.

"You are dismissed."

Expectantly Neji was the first to leave, disappearing much like Sasuke and Masado had earlier. He was very strict to his belief of executing a mission correctly and returning promptly, leaving nothing amiss. When he felt that once he had fulfilled such a belief there was no reason to remain longer than necessary. His presence, although greatly important to the Hokage, was just as imperative to his clan for its own private reasons. Neji was never one to discuss personal matters with her even though they were partners and so she was left to either ponder what possible explanations there could be or to just ignore it altogether.

Upon his exit the two women, teacher and student, stood in the now quiet room and looked at one another. The flickering candle flames bathed them in pulsing yellow hues against the blue and white of the night. The blonde was now leaning forward in her chair, head resting on her hands in a familiar manner as she looked at the pink haired kunoichi expectantly.

Unfortunately for the older woman, Sakura didn't budge but instead just stared inquiry written into her sharp gaze that though tinged with sleep, were still clear and focused. With a sigh Tsunade laid her hands flat on her desk as she rose to her feet, eyeing her student. Ever the perfectionist in her missions and training, Sakura was quite bright to say the very least, but there were times when Tsunade wished she would just play ignorant to some things. The forefront currently being the Uchiha predicament.

"What is it Sakura?" she asked calmly, already knowing what the reply would be.

This was it. Sakura had been waiting to talk privately with her teacher since she first laid eyes on Sasuke and now was her perfect opportunity. The whirlwind of emotions she had experience when realization of just who Ryuu dawned on her returned full force.

Anger. Betrayal. Unease. Heartbreak.

"Why is Sasuke in ANBU?" she asked tentatively with underlying frustration. Her green eyes searched for an answer in her teachers from behind her mask.

Tsunade came to stand in front of her desk. "If I remember correctly you had requested to be kept in the dark of anything to do with him," she said, throwing Sakura's decision back in her face. "That was what was done. Anything to possibly be talked about involving him was kept from you. You had asked for that, Sakura."

Though she had realized it already, hearing those words stung. She wasn't going to lie to herself and say otherwise, but hearing it from her teacher seemed to hurt more than if someone else were to tell her, the gentle rebuke clear. Tsunade had been with her throughout the whole experience concerning Sasuke and Sakura knew that her teacher was more than aware of the feelings she held towards him.

"Now that you have come face to face with him again are you curious?" Her tone was not meant to be spiteful, nor condescending, but Sakura felt it sharp as day like a kunai to the chest none the less. She could feel her eyes gathering moisture but she fought them back. The Hokage was right, if she had never found out that Sasuke was in ANBU she would have never asked about him. What gave her the right? She knew that instead she simply would have continued to pretend like he never existed.

"The damage Sasuke had caused from the time he left Konoha to the time he returned was unforgivable an inexcusable in my opinion. The council and I had numerous discussions on this matter and the future of the remaining Uchiha the moment he arrived back with Naruto," explained Tsunade. She didn't exactly want to have this conversation with her student but she knew the importance of it being addressed right away.

"Originally, Sasuke was not going to be allowed to be a ninja or to even stay in Leaf. However, when a certain blonde jinchuriki caught wind of this he barged in and made one of the biggest scenes I've ever had the misfortune of witnessing in my office," she paused and looked up at the ceiling, a small smile appearing on her face as she seemed to remember Naruto's words in her head. "With all of his yelling, he was eventually able to sway my mind. Spewing on and on how his friend should be given a second chance and be spared his life."

Sakura had remained impassive throughout the Hokage's speech but her attention snagged on the words that had just left her teachers mouth. "Spared his life?"

Her teacher turned a cold gaze on her. "What did you expect to happen to Sasuke when he returned? He had not only abandoned Konoha but ruthlessly attacked former teammates and teachers, nearly killing them. That itself is enough to be punishable by death."

Sakura's eyes widened behind her mask.

Death...

Being a shinobi always had death written along side of it. They went hand in hand and every ninja knew it, something they all had to accept and move past. It was a daily occurrence when in battle against an enemy. There would always be a high chance of casualties, especially during a war. But in the case of a village sentencing one of its members to death was not such a common occurrence and much to her annoyance hearing that had shaken her.

Neither was the case of a shinobi defecting, on the other hand. Yes, it did happen but it was not an everyday thing, especially concerning the ninja of the Hidden Leaf. Sakura knew that not only herself but every ninja and civilian in this village held their heads high with pride to be part of Konoha. To die protecting it was viewed as an honor. Being not only a medic for Konoha, but also a jounin and member of ANBU she had it on great authority that the feeling was shared through the entirety of ninja community as a whole.

Even with Sasuke's defection, in the beginning they had been obsessed in returning him to his place of birth and in the minds of some people that never stopped. Because of this, the possibility of Sasuke even being executed seemed almost farfetched. Her stomach rolled and she clenched her jaw slightly, alarmed at the thought. Sakura could see him being stripped the certification to be a ninja and his abilities sealed but _death… _death was something that never crossed her mind.

Tsunade ran a hand through her hair. "It was agreed then that a compromise would be made as a result of Naruto's persistence. Sasuke was to be forbidden to participate in any missions whatsoever for as long as I deemed it fit. He was to follow every order I gave him and if he were to disobey in any way, that would be the end of it. Eventually I allowed him to train and a few months after that, I allowed him to demonstrate to myself and to the council just what he was capable of. Looking back I wish I had waited longer."

"Why is that?"

Her teacher sighed. "The council suddenly became unrelenting in knowing just the extent Sasuke had developed and when they saw the power he possessed it seemed like it was almost intoxicating to them. They were quick to decide just what position he would be given. It was agreed that he would be placed as a jounin at first and that is the extent where I thought it would remain. However a few weeks later another meeting was called and the topic of allowing him into ANBU came into play."

She paused for a moment a look of tight regret passed across her features briefly and she let her eyes fall to the ground with a shake of her head. "I can almost see why it was decided he would be a jounin, he is more than capable for the position, but to be allowed into ANBU was something that even I never saw coming."

When Tsunade had walked into the meeting that fateful day the final decision had already been made, she could feel that there was a change in the air. There was something about the way the council members were discussing the Uchiha that simply irked the Hokage, filling her with cold, black dread. Overnight they had become obsessed with someone whom originally the idea of executing wasn't losing them a wink of sleep. It was like after seeing Sasuke demonstrate his abilities, the chakra that had flowed from him purely drugged the members of the council and they had yet to get off of their high, intoxication playing with their minds like a Siren out at sea, unknowingly leading them astray.

"Even with Sasuke's recent mishaps, the council still does not wish to punish him because they believe he will, in time, make Konoha proud once again. Maybe they think he will be able to restore the Uchiha name after all?"

Sakura had for a long time thought that Tsunade being the Hokage had the ultimate power and prestige to override any decision. That nothing was final until her say-so but listening to Tsunade's explanation made Sakura realize whatever she had previously thought was completely untrue. How many times tonight would the floor be ripped out from underneath her? But her teacher did hold some power right? Sakura didn't exactly care that Sasuke was assigned to Jounin position because that didn't exactly require her to work with him if she stayed in either ANBU or the hospital.

"Isn't there any way for you to…demote him from ANBU?" Sakura was getting desperate. Once she saw her teacher shake her head 'no' she knew she would be taking less ANBU missions and spending more time in the hospital in the very near future.

"For the time being Sasuke's position is finalized and unless something drastic happens nothing will remove him, Sakura."

This angered Sakura. "Even abandoning your teammate and using him as _bait _is not qualified enough for him to be demoted?"

"I am very well aware of what happened Sakura," reminded Tsunade. "But even that is not an excuse to devalue him in the council's eyes because he did eliminate the ninja who had ambushed them."

He had completed the mission and it was more than enough reason to keep him in the ANBU squad. What he had been sent out to do, he had accomplished even at the expense of the wellbeing of his teammate.

The council disgusted Sakura for considering lives like a grain of salt.

"Sakura, contrary to what you believe, I understand how you feel right now."

Her teachers tone caught Sakura off guard. It sounded softer than how she had been talking to her this whole time. The brown orbs that now stared back at her seemed to soften in sympathy. Teacher and student stared at one another in silence. Sometimes Sakura would forget that her teacher was also Hokage mainly because they spent so much time together. Tsunade was not as strict with her as she was with others. She knew her teacher was only doing what was required of her position and Sakura needed to accept the decision that was made because whether she liked it or not, it wasn't going to change as easily as she thought it might.

Being the Hokage of a rather large village was no easy task after all.

"You might be upset with me for a while because of this," she stated before continuing in a more serious manner. "But you cannot let your emotions get in the way of any mission that I give you. If you do, it could be not only be detrimental to yourself but to Konoha as a whole."

Sakura averted her gaze, wondering if Sasuke had told her anything about the punch she had delivered to his shadow clone or if what she said was based purely on her reactions or the emotions she knew her teacher could read from her even with the mask on her face.

"I understand."

The familiar sound of heels scraping against wood filled her ears before the form of her teacher stopped beside her. "If we are finished here I expected a mission report tomorrow like everyone else. You are dismissed."

* * *

Arriving home was the easiest task Sakura had for the early hours of the morning. After the talk with the Hokage, it took mere minutes to travel from the rather large tower, across the rooftops and to her own apartment. Slipping in through the window was not a problem either, having had just the right amount of time and practice to leave it in such a way where she could open and close it soundlessly so as not to alert her neighbors of her late arrival.

Once inside she drew the curtains together immediately and found the switch on the wall to turn on the lights. It was only then that she allowed herself to remove her mask and set it down on her bed along with the guards she wore and the sword that had been perched on her back for the duration of the mission, leaving her only in the black undershirt and pants.

The small pack that had been on her now faced her from the bed. Sakura's eyes narrowed down at the exasperating object. The pack itself wasn't exactly what really bothered Sakura.

No, it was more of what was in it.

With a quick jerk Sakura opened the pack and let her hand clasp around the blank mission scroll that rested inside. Bringing it to eye level Sakura let herself squeeze it almost painfully, if it were someone's neck it would surely be crushed under such pressure.

Turning, she dropped it carelessly onto the table, letting it unravel slightly as she continued off into the bathroom for a nice long shower and to do anything else as she pleased. The last thing she wanted to do at the moment was write about what had happened.

It wasn't necessarily that she would hate writing about how the mission to the Hidden Sand village went. Rather it would be the events after that would frustrate Sakura to explain in detail. She didn't want to think about it. Why couldn't Sasuke just stay dead to her instead of opening all these old wounds and invoking such bothersome emotions?

Emerging from the bathroom fully dried off and dressed in pajama's, the scroll caught the corner of her eye. She could see the menacing sheen of white from across the room but she continued to ignore it as she walked to her fridge to pour herself a glass of cold water that she always kept.

As she sipped lightly from the glass the damned scroll loomed still in her peripheral vision. It reminded Sakura of when she was back in the academy days where she would go to school and see the one person who she detested the most. They would be the one person who she would see first even in a crowded room. She hated that feeling.

Releasing an aggravated sigh she downed the rest of her drink and finally, walked over to her small table and sat down on the floor, letting her eyes slide down the line of the opened white before her. Reaching out she smoothed out the bumps that had formed from the chaotic way it had been rolled out.

Sakura almost wished that it would burst into flames for a moment there. She was no fire jutsu master but a simple match could do the trick. Not even her super strength would be needed to tear apart such a flimsy thing. She stopped herself though, knowing she didn't have an extra blank scroll and besides, she didn't exactly feel like traipsing back to the tower which she now fully intended to avoid.

"I'll just write this tonight and give it to her as soon as I wake up tomorrow and be done with it."

With forced determination she grabbed her pen and began to write the sequence of events that took place starting from the departure of Konoha, to the arrival of Amegakure. She went into great detail of how many days it took, the time in which they arrived, the time in which they left, what was said between all parties and whatever else she noticed, not daring to leave anything unaccounted for.

The first part of her mission report was easy: straight and to the point.

The second part on the other hand had Sakura pausing before starting the new paragraph. She wanted to suddenly scribble on the scroll in frustration as she thought about just how to phrase everything.

But more importantly, just how she was going to write about _him _plagued her mind like a poison. She could feel herself tense again with anxiety, the familiar feelings of the day awakening once more making her heart ache…something that only served to piss her off more.

She didn't want to write about Sasuke, that would only cause her rehash the past and think about writing down every detail that concerned him forced a small growl to escape from her throat. Having the mental image of the masked face glowing with sharingan eyes was another thing that Sakura didn't want invading her thoughts.

Personal feelings were something that was not required in a mission scroll. There was no reason for her to write "Seeing Sasuke for the first time in forever made me upset," "Finally realizing that Ryuu was Sasuke made me want to kill him!" "I was so angry I punched him square in the face but unfortunately it was a shadow clone."

No, those things were definitely _not_ appropriate for a mission scroll and she'd rather her teacher not find out about her sudden outburst.

Even thinking about writing his name almost caused the kunoichi to break her pen. Thankfully with a deep calming sigh though she was able to get her bearings, snapping on herself to get it together, and remembered that she probably shouldn't lead on in divulging his birth name but instead write his alias that the Hokage had assigned to him. That would take a little tension off of her and the pen she was now beginning to write with once more.

Finally after some swearing and a messy spell check the report was done and rolled back up promptly, thrown back into the pack in the same manner that it had been taken out and the pack then thrown under the bed and out of eyesight before Sakura finally lay down in her bed with a grateful moan.

Idly her fingers touched the edge of her curtain and pulled it back, letting the light of the moon stream down onto the bed for a moment before letting it go. The sun would rise in a few hours and Sakura decided it would be best if she slept for a bit before making an early run to drop off the scroll. After that she would be more than happy to come back home to finish sleeping.

For a few hours, she would let her mind rest.

* * *

Sakura had not done much of anything since handing her mission scroll to her teacher two days prior. Like she wanted, Sakura arrived early only having slept a measly five hours between her return home and delivery of the scroll, something which did not go overlooked by Tsunade.

"_Why are you here so early Sakura?" came the questioning voice of Tsunade from behind her desk. "I thought I told you to get some rest, not sleep for five hours and then be back in my office."_

_She would have figured that even putting the labor of the mission aside, Sakura would have at least felt exhausted from the overload of emotional distress. Even with the distinct signs of exhaustion on the kunoichi's face didn't stop her student from smiling and shaking her head._

"_I'm alright Shishou, really. I figured I'd stop by and drop off the mission report then head home and sleep some more."_

No alarm had awoken her that early. Her body was completely used to getting up at different hours due to not only missions but working erratic hours at the hospital also. It seemed as though her body didn't register that she was now on lazy mode but Sakura knew why.

It was only when she dropped the scroll into Tsunade's awaiting hand did Sakura feel the tension slowly seep from her body. The emotional attachment the scroll held seemed to dissipate when Sakura's hand released it, knowing now that she would not have to worry about it and could wipe it from her mind and focus on other things…

This came to her request of working in the hospital again, full-time.

Which was promptly and utterly shut down.

"_No."_

_Sakura had been expecting a little banter with her teacher like usual. Tsunade would say how she should take a rest for a few days and then come back and she would say "oh no shishou! I am ready to work right now!" and it would go on from there._

_However this time was very different._

"_What about part-time?"_

"_No." Hard face._

_Sakura looked at her teacher in shock. "What do you mean?" fear started to creep up on her._

_The stack of papers in front of Tsunade were promptly picked up and lightly tapped against the desk to straighten them out in a neater pile. "You are to rest during this short period of time Sakura. You will have another mission about a week from today."_

"_But-"_

_The chair in which Tsunade had been sitting was promptly pushed back with a loud screech. "There is no 'but' in this Sakura. This upcoming mission was assigned to you and a team on special request."_

_Ah. It wasn't hard for the experienced pink haired kunoichi to put two and two together. It seemed as if the council was behind this one._

"_Now go home and get some rest," Tsunade said gruffly as she walked past her student._

And now here Sakura was, in her apartment having done nothing for two days except sleep and buy a small amount of groceries from the market to hold her over for the week.

She did keep herself busy though sneaking into the hospital the previous day to see just how well Shino was recovering. To her delight his wounds were healing very nicely and would most likely not leave a mark. He was much healthier and was able to talk with ease compared to when she first found him. Hopefully he would be discharged in the next upcoming days.

There was an unexpected loud knocking at the door followed by "Open up Forehead! I know you're home!" that caught Sakura off guard.

Taking a hurried bite of the apple she held in her hands, Sakura moved towards the door and turned the locks before opening it. Ino stood on the other side, expectantly.

No one other than this girl called her Forehead and got away with it.

"Finally! Took you long enough!"

Three seconds was too long to wait?

"Hi Ino, come ri-"

Pushing past Sakura, the busty blonde made her way into the room without letting her friend finish inviting her in. "I can't believe you didn't invite me over sooner Sakura. I mean really! We've been friends for years and I'm the one that had to come and invite myself." She turned on Sakura with a 'hmph' and crossed her arms, looking at her expectantly.

Ino's antics never seemed to get old or change for that matter.

"Listen Ino-Pig, I've only been home for three days and have done nothing but eat and sleep."

The women looked at each other for a few silent moments. If anyone were to witness them as a third party it would seem as if they were having a tense stand-off. But, like always the girls cracked small smiles before they both slowly erupted into giggles and ended up in a hug.

"I've missed you so much Sakura." _Forehead._

"I've missed you too Ino." _Pig. _

Pulling away from each other Sakura invited Ino to sit but the blonde declined. "I've only come by to ask if you're going to the festival tonight. Everyone seems to be coming home today from their missions and a bunch of us are going to be there. It's not often that Konoha holds festivals anymore."

It was true. Because of all the recent uprisings that had broken out amongst the nations, Konoha had little time to have peaceful events. It seemed now for a short while that Konoha would allow the citizens to enjoy a fun night. Sakura had seen some signs when she walked around the market but she wasn't so sure she would actually like to participate.

"I had no idea about the festival," she lied.

Ino gave her a disapproving look. "Don't lie to me forehead! Signs are posted all over the village."

"I guess I must have missed them. My mind isn't exactly working correctly these days," she bit into her apple.

"Well guess what, you're going," Ino decided. "It's nothing fancy, only traditional clothes and most of the street vendors will have activities and games. Of course the main event will be held later tonight. I can't wait to see the fireworks!" she clasped her hands together in excitement, a noticeable glow in her eyes.

Sakura had to smile at her friend. "Who's going? Is anyone even back from their missions yet?"

"Well of course you and I are here as well as Neji. Hinata, Tenten and Choji are rumored to arrive back in the village in about two hours. I saw Shikamaru yesterday brooding somewhere and Kiba has recently been released from the hospital so he should also be there." She turned back to look at her friend who had just finished her apple and set the core on the table. "That's all I know so far who are definitely attending."

Sakura nodded her head. That would mean there would be a nice amount of people Sakura knew who she could chat with and possibly do some sort of fun things with. She couldn't exactly see herself spending time with Neji comfortably other than on a mission, but she knew Hinata and Ino would be more than enough to keep her occupied.

There was someone that Ino failed to mention though.

"What about-"

"Naruto?" Ino finished. "I haven't heard any news on him for a few weeks now. The last of what I did hear is that he learned some kind of new mode?"

"Oh." Sakura replied, crestfallen.

"Don't worry Forehead! Naruto will be back before you know it, don't let the fact that he isn't back yet ruin the night!"

"It won't ruin my night, Ino." She didn't mean to sound quite as callous as she did. Just because Naruto probably was not going to be back during the short time that Sakura was didn't mean that she would let it affect her. She was used to it by now, just missing him by a few days or so happened to both of them on different occasions.

But it would have been nice to see a familiar face like his. He was probably the closest person to Sakura besides her teacher and even Ino.

"Well now that we have come to the decision that you are coming tonight," Ino began as she moved towards the door and opened it. "We are all meeting at seven at Ichiraku, don't be late."

When the door slammed most fashionably behind Ino, Sakura was left alone in silence. Her eyes lingered on the door before glancing over to the clock. She still had a while before she would need to get ready to join the others.

For now she would get another cat nap in. Hopefully the festivities tonight wouldn't prove to be a mistake.

* * *

Another chapter out, and just in time for Christmas! So Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!

**Authors Note:** Hey everyone, just wanted to clear something up. It is in my understanding that Konoha's society is like a semi-feudal society. The Hokage is a public ruler that does not hold sole power over Konoha. Power given to the Hokage is given by the Daimyo, who elects the Hokage after listening to elders, nobles, as well as high ranking individuals. The Hokage is the head of the military whose duties consist of taking care of the day to day operations of the village, especially with missions and such. It is also my understanding that the council/elders still do not trust her and consider her to be a newbie so they butt heads all the time. So after debating they came to the decision to put Sasuke in ANBU. If it came off as if Tsunade just walked in and agreed to everything they said, that's not how I meant it to come across. Also if you look at the Uchiha Massacre, that is a great example where a majority (elders/council) agreed to take an action against the minority, which was the Hokage. So yes, the council and elders do hold more power sometimes.

Please review and let me know what you thought! This chapter is slightly shorter than the rest but I hope it was enjoyable.

Until next time!


	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** Whispers On the Wind_**  
**_**Written By: **Dark Paine**  
Beta:** CripticWolf  
**Summary:** The thought of Team Seven reuniting was something Sakura would never have believed to be possible. But when Sasuke returns after defeating Itachi, everything changes.

**Whispers On the Wind**

It was a few hours after Ino left that Sakura finally mustered up the energy to get off her bed. She wasn't exactly in a rush to prepare for this festival, knowing full well that the closest person to her would not be in attendance. At the same time however, she knew she needed something like this.

It wasn't like she had no idea whom she would be seeing or possibly spending time with tonight. She knew a lot of them well enough, probably having treated almost all of them at one point or another for their injuries.

However, the events of her last mission had left her stressed and restless which still lingered even days later. It would have been helpful to vent to Naruto and get his opinion on certain things but she guessed at this point since she still heard no signs of him, that it would not be possible tonight. It was strange how relaxed she could become just being in the jinchuriki's presence.

Maybe a night out with friends would do some good for her? There couldn't possibly be anything _horrible_ about it aside from some people getting rowdy or drunk but that was the norm at festivals, especially for shinobi who wanted to release stress from being on difficult missions for days on end. The pink haired kunoichi could sympathize with that.

A chance to break loose, unwind and have a good time was all she needed.

So finally a half an hour before the designated meeting time, Sakura finally got up and walked to her closet and began digging for the only yukata she had. It had been a gift from her mother a few years back, a lighter shade of pink to go with her hair and with darker cherry blossoms adorned on it. So fitting for someone named such as she.

When Sakura had opened the gift her mother had referred to it as 'the one'. Saying she had seen it and just known it would be a mistake not to get it. The dress had reminded her so much of her daughter.

Occasions where she could wear such an item did not come along as often as she'd liked but this festival gave her perfect reason to wear a yukata. It had been hot during the day and knowing that the heat would likely remain long past sunset the light cooling fabric of a yukata would be welcomed. After all they were a perfect combination of traditional, yet proper dress wear and so much more refreshing.

Shrugging on the yukata, Sakura folded the sides of the fabric across her chest before tying the darker pink obi around her waist. Once it was secured she walked into the bathroom grabbing a pair of chopsticks along the way and used them to secure a messy bun in her hair. She looked back at her reflection in the mirror, deemed herself to look pretty decent enough without having to bother doing anything fancy with her face and smiled. Unlike Ino, who loved to cake on as much make up as possible to make her look pretty, or at least whatever her interpretation of 'pretty' was. Sakura had no reservations toward walking around with a fresh face.

She rolled her eyes at her friend's sometimes questionable habits before taking one last glance in the mirror, grabbing her wallet and slipping on her sandals before finally leaving.

The setting sun in the distance, awash with vibrant color as rich as a fires flame in the night, was the first sight to greet Sakura as she walked along the bustling streets of Konoha. Her heart warmed at the reminder of just how beautiful her home was as she looked up, and her sharp gaze caught sight of that endless sky. She wouldn't have been able to keep at bay the small smile that appeared on her face if she had to. It seemed so peaceful up there. So untouched and calm, painted with smooth arrays of oranges and yellows against a crystalline blue backdrop.

Her thoughtful gaze was drawn back to the streets with a small sigh shortly as she wove her ways through the crowded streets. The village was in full swing of the festivities it seemed. Many of the street vendors remained open and would stay so until late in the night selling whatever they offered whether it be fabric, accessories, shoes, festival favors or the ever a popular seller; food. They sure had quite the competitive night ahead of them.

Some sellers had on the other hand changed their stands into game-like attractions that children could play as their parents coached them on. It was nice to see so many families enjoying the time they had with each other on such a night. Sakura knew well how quickly the peace could be taken from them but she quickly dismissed those thoughts. She was supposed to be relaxing after all and she'd be dammed if she let anyone, even herself keep her from doing just that.

It helped seeing the relaxed forms of others as they passed through and Sakura soon allowed herself to unwind as well. The level of alert awareness created and made stronger daily by being a ninja was there, would never leave, no matter what she was doing or where she was but being in her own village made her feel safe and able to let down most of her guard. Besides ANBU would most likely be hidden everywhere in the shadows tonight anyway to ensure the safety of Konoha's citizens.

Tsunade would make sure of it.

Turning down another road Sakura could see the Ichiraku in the distance, surrounded by an assortment of people. She recognized Ino right away, it not being very hard to spot the bright blonde haired woman with her tall sandals and her loud mouth. Sakura could hear her one time enemy as she argued with Choji for eating so much.

She was about to call out to the group in greeting but there was one terrifying, groan inducing voice that made Sakura stop in her tracks when the source of it bellowed her name. Widened, unenthusiastic eyes rested on the approaching figure.

At first Sakura could discern little aside from the billowing clouds of dust being kicked up by the eager figure as he ran towards her at full speed but a flash of green quickly confirmed her suspicions.

"Sakura-chan!"

_Oh-no…_

The figure came to an abrupt stop before her and the dust that had been traveling so closely behind him engulfed the two of them in a funnel cloud. Small pebbles made a wild descent back to their rightful place on the ground.

"Hi Lee," coughed Sakura when the cloud dissipated enough for her to choke out the greeting. Her eyes stung from the dirt but thankfully and a bit irritably she was able to blink away the pain.

"Oh my beloved Sakura-chan, are you alright?" Lee asked as he swatted and blew at the flying dirt particles to move in the opposite direction of the pink haired kunoichi. "I am so very sorry for my abruptness but I could not stop myself when I caught a glimpse of those beautiful cherry blossom locks of yours!"

Sakura laughed awkwardly. Having someone as…exotic and passionate as Lee being one of her admirers always brought a little bit of hair triggered aversion from the impending yet unintentional danger she could be facing.

Sometimes it was a little too much.

When she felt his hands start to pat her shoulders to get the remaining dust off of her, she hastily grabbed them, giving them a small squeeze before removing them from her body. That was a step over the line in her book.

Sakura could all but feel his eyes peering at her in question; not missing the slight twitch of his fingers out the corner of her eye. The twitch must have been a reaction to the small amount of chakra she had zapped him with as a warning to not do that again.

"Thanks Lee, but I'm alright. A little dust won't kill me."

"Sakura!" The shout was distinctly Ino this time, and taking this opportunity to excuse herself from the buoyant green nin, Sakura politely sidestepped Lee and proceeded to the front of the Ichiraku where the group was. Of course Lee was only a few steps behind her, recovered from his slight worry at the thought of possibly hurting his precious Sakura-chan.

"So you finally made it? I thought you were going to skip out on us for a minute there!" taunted Ino, a smirk firmly in place.

Sakura raised her eyebrow. "I'm right on time, Ino."

The blonde woman shook her head. "It's 7:02, so you're late! It seems like we've been waiting forever!" The jesting aside she untangled her crossed arms and turned to the others, "Come on everyone, let the carousing begin!"

Ino began to walk back towards the group but paused and turned to look back at Sakura, who stared back in confusion at her friend and companion.

"I'm glad you came Sakura."

Something about the way Ino said those words touched Sakura and she smiled at the genuine sentiment. It had been a while since she had heard such sincerity coming from a person who truly wanted her for presence alone and not just for her abilities to help in a situation. Requests to go on certain missions often required the client to have asked for Sakura based on her special abilities and performance specifically in missions, and she knew they were just made upon her reputation and success as a ninja.

Not for her as a person.

It was nice being reminded every now and then that life wasn't all about work. It didn't matter how she felt personally however. The situation was simple, and set in stone, she was being paid for what they asked and her Hokage had given her the direct orders. End of story. It was what being a ninja required and only got darker and more demanding as they rose in the ranks. Sakura understood and respected it but she needed that disconnect sometimes, for sanity's sake, between her duty and everyday life.

So for once, to be asked for something so simple as to be in the company of someone and time together with no strings attached gave Sakura such an indescribably good feeling that broadened the small smile she had returned to Ino with one full of vibrancy.

* * *

The group that Sakura joined consisted of Ino, Lee, Neji, Tenten, Shikamaru, Choji, Hinata and Kiba. All of them were dressed in the traditional light clothing fit for the festival as well, a collection of color and styles. Ino wore a blue yukata while Hinata wore a purple one, both seeming to fit each of them nicely and compliment them well. Lee of course donned a green outfit; his signature color after all.

Neji and Tenten seemed to match with silver and black designs. They were the 'unofficial' couple that everyone knew about. The two spent so much time together ever since they first began working together years ago and Sakura knew that her ANBU partner was most comfortable around the brown haired woman. Tenten, for her part, fully denied it though when Sakura asked if they had planned it, instead deeming it a mere 'coincidence'. There was no fooling Sakura though.

Shikamaru donned a simple black and gold pattern while Choji went for a more elaborate red that was filled with all different types of designs. Kiba also went with a rather flashy black outfit that had a white picture of a dog on the back, most likely designed after Akamaru. The large white dog was of course dutifully right beside his master.

Each of them had taken the time to greet her in unison kindly, both Hinata and Kiba even took extra time to thank her for saving their teammate Shino from what could have possibly been disaster.

Choji, was sitting at his usual table in Ichiraku, finished his last bowl before releasing an audible burp. Sakura couldn't help but turn to look at the larger man as his bowl joined the already towering stack before him as he opened his wallet. The owner, Teuchi who had turned around to make sure that Choji didn't run off before paying, stood just on the other side of the bar eying the nin with the same mix of disgust and awe at his eating habits as he did every time the rather round nin came by.

When his eyes finally strayed from the other ninja and met hers, recognition crossed his face and he visibly brightened.

"It's been a while since I've seen you around here! How have you been?" he asked energetically.

"I've been doing well, just keeping myself busy," an understatement that garnered the suspicious looks of some members of the group. "How is business?"

The man turned and drew a bowl of ramen for another customer before setting it down on the bar. "Business is doing quite well, although it would be better if Naruto was around. Have you heard from him lately?"

For a moment Sakura could feel her expression begin to drop but hastily remembered where she was and fought to keep her mood light. She shook her head. "I haven't seen him in a while, but hopefully he will return soon."

The man smiled and wagged his finger at her. "I sure hope so! That boy eats more ramen then I've ever seen." Surprising after all the food Choji had wolfed down just seconds before. She had no doubt about the validity of his statement though. Naruto was known for his appetite as large as his stubborn pride. "I sure don't miss cleaning up after him though." Teuchi laughed, the skin at the corners of his eyes crinkling into familiar lines of amusement.

After bidding the man farewell they continued walked through the streets, occasionally stopping at the assorted vendors scattered along their path. Members of the group seemed to pair off quickly which did not go unnoticed by Lee who keenly decided to stick himself next to Sakura like glue when she was left without an escort.

"My dear Sakura, I will win you all of the prizes today!" he announced to her most gloriously, signaling the beginning of a sequence of events that would prove to be just as entertaining for Sakura as they would be embarrassing for Lee.

While Ino and Hinata received winning prizes from Shikimaru and Kiba, Sakura was left to watch in awe and bewildered hilarity as Lee continued to fail miserably at winning her anything.

Hell, even Neji won Tenten something with little to no effort.

But Lee…he just couldn't.

The first game they had come upon was a simple one. All he had to do was throw a ball as hard as he could and knock down all the bottles in front of him. Everyone who had gone before him and had been successful so it seemed as if it would be no sweat for the fighting expert yet in spite of the signs as he geared up mentally to win his beloved the forsaken stuffy he repeated the mantra his sensei had once knowledgeably shared with him in his head:

_A ball thrown at the bottles will not hit, but if one does not aim at the bottles, it will hit! A ball thrown at the bottles will not hit, but if one does not aim at the bottles, it will hit! __**A ball thrown at the bottles will not hit, but if one does not aim at the bottles, it will hit!**_

_**That is the law I will use for this challenge!**_

Sakura watched as the black haired ninja, who moments ago had appeared lost in thought, abruptly sprung into action and throw his ball with all the power he possessed at the target. It ripped through the air and hit the stack of bottles smack in the middle yet instead of seeing the obliterated bottles burst in a shower of glass like expected, it was quite a shock to everyone when eyes their eyes reopened.

Before them stood a pile of bottles stock still and unmoving like a protester in the throes of belief based action that not only had remained standing after the dust settled but hadn't budged a single inch.

Questioning looks appeared on everyone's faces at the sight and for a moment Lee too was taken aback with a slacked jaw. Staring gave way to a determined glare as he put on a strong face and resiliently grabbed another ball.

"I, Rock Lee, have two more tries to eliminate this foe with all the power Gai Sensei has entrusted and bestowed upon me! I will win Sakura the biggest stuffed animal that was ever made!"

"You can do it Lee!" Hinata cheered to the side ever so timidly.

"Yea Lee, show those damn bottles what you've got!" called Ino.

Again Lee chanted his long standing law in his mind as he canted his arm back, aimed and propelled the ball forward with lightning speed. Sakura could have sworn she saw a small twinkle in his eye as he thanked his 'beloved' friends for believing in him. The smile though was short-lived when his eyes returned to the still standing bottles.

His jaw nearly fell to the ground in disbelief as a small bead of sweat dropped down his face. He had exhorted a lot of energy that time trying to knock the bottles down. His eyes glanced to his precious pink haired kunoichi who had a look of wonder on her face. When their eyes caught she smiled at him though.

"It's alright Lee, you don't have to win me anything. We can play a different game."

A wrapped fisted hand rose up, a declaration in and of itself. "No! Sakura I will win you that plushy toy!" Continuing his pursuit for success, Rock Lee grabbed the last ball and looked at it with such determination that Sakura could feel Lee's rising strength in the air from his intense concentration.

"Are you sure Lee?" Sakura asked hesitantly. She glanced at the vendor who had a mysterious look in his eyes and doubted that Lee was getting a fair shot.

"Come on Lee, what the hell is wrong with you?" yelled Kiba before looking away. "Can't even knock down a simple set of bottles and yet you call yourself a ninja." He rolled his eyes.

With a growl the bushy browed ninja whipped in the direction of Kiba. "I heard that! I will prove you wrong, you will see! I will never give up, that is my ninja way."

Lee performed a tight turn, almost like an elegant pirouette. "Here we go," he announced, "with this final ball….I will defeat these devious bottles!" and for the last time all reserves of energy diverted for maximum damage he threw the ball.

Their group fell silent as they watched the ball that Lee had thrown hit the stack of bottles and bounce off the impenetrable forms only to fall to the ground with a 'thud'. The ball bounced once before the vendor picked it up with a loud raucous laugh.

"Better luck next time kid!"

The look on Lee's face was pure devastation. It seemed as though he had firmly believed that the first and second shot had missed but this final shot would hit the target stead fast and with glorifying results. To his heartbreak, he was yet again unsuccessful.

"There is just no way…" Sakura heard Lee's slumped over form say.

Tenten came up and patted her usually overenthusiastic teammate on the back. "Don't worry Lee, there are plenty of games for you to win! This festival is filled with them; you're bound to win something tonight."

"But I wanted to win Sakura that big toy," pouting, he raised his finger to point at the large stuffed male character that bore uncanny resemblance to the ninja himself.

Neji turned to walk. "Let's go Lee."

Sakura gave him a friendly smile as she came to stand beside him. "Thank you Lee, for at least trying. It means a lot."

Her words gave Sakura the desired effect; Lee's face immediately became more confident. A fire burned in his eyes.

"You are very welcome Sakura! And Tenten is right; there are many more opportunities to win you something."

* * *

Regrettably, with every game they played, Lee's failure remained constant. It was astonishing that no matter how hard he tried to win Sakura a gift, much to his growing dismay, he would miss. His frustration only seemed to cultivate when his eye would catch the sight of the other girls holding multiple things while Sakura's deserving hands were left barren.

His display of flamboyant moves and speeches though never ceased, amusing most members of the group spurring laughs and jovial cheering. Neji of course wanted none of that and looked on in boredom and embarrassment at his flailing teammate. He questioned how he could possibly end up with such a pathetic teammate. Lee should have at least been able to hit _one_ balloon with the dart.

Sakura had to pull the energetic ninja away from most of the games. If she didn't, Lee's nindo, being to never give up, would have had them standing there for hours. Expenses be damned.

Before he could take up permanent residence in the poor house, Sakura pulled him away; searching for something else that would prove interesting…and hopefully nothing to do with any form of currency.

She was flattered, really, by his gestures and determination but Sakura was not going to let Lee go broke just for a stupid stuffed toy. So she maneuvered him in the direction the group was heading, hoping to lay low with the distraction of small conversations.

"Hey, you!"

Sakura could feel the eyes on the back of her neck, boring into her. She did not look however, hoping that it would go away. It did, but unfortunately the loud male voice turned his attention to someone else. Sakura covered her eyes with her hand and shook her head slowly, a sigh escaping her.

"You! Bushy brows!"

Was it too soon to return to her serene apartment?

Lee, who had been walking beside Sakura, of course stopped and turned his head in either direction. "Bushy brows? He could not possibly mean me. My eyebrows are sculpted just like Sensei's!"

Now Sakura looked at him in disbelief. There was just no way. No. She stared hard at the ground pleading for it to come and swallow her up.

"Yea you, caterpillar face!"

The pink haired kunoichi turned her head in the direction of the smug demeaning voice as the others, finally realizing who the older man was taunting, came to the halt beside them. Curious looks searched one another as they became interested in the scene.

At the same time Lee and Sakura seemed to spot the old man sitting in the dunk tank, dressed as a clown but maintaining a most familiar look to a certain teacher with long hair and defining feature: the pervy stare.

"Is that…is that Jiraiya?" asked Tenten curiously, head tilted to the side as she tried to get a better look at the colorful man behind the bars.

"What's it to you sweet buns?" called the man, obviously overhearing Tenten's statement.

The weapons specialists' mouth hung open.

Kiba barked out a laugh. "What the hell is that old man doing here?"

"Who are you kidding? He's got nothing better to do than hit on young girls," sighed Ino, sweeping her long blond hair behind her. "Probably doing some 'research' for his perverted novel."

The old man smacked the bars loudly with a laugh. "Of course! This is the perfect opportunity for research and for your clever guess I will reward you by modeling my next most main character after you!" he pointed his finger suggestively at Ino.

Shikamaru shook his head. "Oh no…"

"Don't you dare! I'll kill you!" the blonde woman screamed, enraged and embarrassed.

Jiraiya shrugged. "Fine then," his eyes searched the group, landing first on Hinata who squeaked and hid behind Kiba before moving to land on Sakura. "Ahh." His forefinger and thumb stroked his painted chin.

Lee immediately jumped in front of her. "I will never let you write such naughty and impure things about my Sakura," he announced vigorously, causing bystanders to look at them.

"Lee," Sakura began in a calm voice betraying the blushing rage inside her. She was trying very hard to remain passive even though she could feel multiple sets of eyes on them now, watching ever so closely to see anything possible. It wasn't helping that Lee was throwing his fist in the air and causing more of a scene.

"I will challenge you!" Without hesitation he moved to the vendor. "I will protect Sakura from your lecherous eyes and put you in the dunk tank you painted prude!"

"Oh no!" Jiraiya's painfully false sense of 'fear' rang throughout the area. His voice carried with ease among the streets, beckoning the attention of anyone within earshot. "I don't want to be dropped into the eerie water. Let's see what you've got Bushy Brows!"

"Sakura you just stand back and watch! I, Rock Lee, will protect you!" the green clad ninja called over his shoulder. In return Sakura gave him a forced smile, knowing that Lee most likely would not hit the target, especially with the pervy sage winding him up. Who knew what kind of trick he had up his sleeve?

_A ball thrown at the target will not hit, but if one does not aim at the target, it will hit! That is the law I will use for this challenge! Be gone old perv! I will NOT let you use Sakura as a specimen for your dirty imagination!_

"Ah!" with a howl Lee catapulted the ball towards the target.

Silence rained over the crowd.

And then…

"What the hell was that? Didn't Might Gai teach you how to aim at least?"

The perverted old man had not been sunk, his full form still sitting on the plank, dry as a bone with the biggest shit eating grin spread wide across his painted face.

"Do not make fun of Gai sensei! He has taught me many valuable things!" screeched Lee in defense of his 'youthful' teacher.

"You weren't even close!" his eyes turned to Sakura. "Maybe that old hags apprentice with the funky hair can do some damage."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him. Had Sakura any doubt that the loudmouth clown was in fact Jiraiya that last remark would have sealed it. Nobody called her sensei an 'old hag' without fear of imminent death. Sakura knew the only reason he lived to tell about it was because Tsunade didn't want to kill one of the last sanin that ever lived. Well, maybe there was a part of Tsunade that didn't want to destroy her former teammate either but Sakura was betting more on the former.

"Come on bubblegum head! Maybe you can aim better than bushy brows here, or is your forehead so big it overlaps your eyesight?"

There were a few intakes of breath from the small group and Sakura could have sworn that her nose flared like an angry bull about to obliterate the poor fool standing in its path.

"Sakura…" called Hinata with trepidation, hand outstretched in her direction. The energy that she could feel radiating off of the other woman was nothing short of fearsome. There was a severe lack of people who would dare make fun of the Hokage, and now her pupil for the pure fact that both possessed an unreal strength.

And neither held any reservations toward using it.

The vendor of the dunk tank took a step back as Sakura approached him, visibly trying to work up the courage to face the enraged woman and not run for cover a few miles away. He lost the battle and quickly darted away as Sakura nearly ripped his arm off during the exchange of the ball. Walking back to stand beside Lee, she tossed the ball up in the air as if testing its weight while glaring death at Jiraiya.

"Forehead? Bubblegum head? Really? I'm surprised an old man like you can see such colors at all. Shouldn't you be blind by now?"

Snickers could be heard from behind her and Sakura adopted a smirk of her own.

"You tell him Sakura! Only I can call you 'Forehead'!" called Ino a little too aggressively, balled fist in the air and fire in her eyes. It seemed the blonde had taken it upon herself to claim possession of the word, enraged that anyone else could ever possibly think of calling Sakura such a name but her.

"What's Sakura going to do?" asked Choji, who stuck his hand in the bag of chips he held before loudly munching on them.

Shikimaru let out an exasperated sigh. "What do you think Choji? She's going to win the game."

There was an eerie kind of power dazzling the air around the group. Each member could feel it crawling along their skin, buzzing electricity exciting anyone within distance. Hair visible on arms and necks stood up in eager anticipation as they looked on to see Sakura and Jiraiya locked in a staring contest, wolf and its prey boring into one another. One of the participants tried to put up a humorous, dare say un-phased front but it was flimsy at best and cackles arose from the crowd as the older man failed to brush his obvious apprehension of regret aside. If ever a man wished words could be swallowed back up.

"You're going to regret your words, old pervert!"

The old man regaining his composure had the audacity to snicker. "Then show me what you've got."

If not for Sakura's mastered ability to channel chakra perfectly, the ball in her hand would have surely turned to dust particles that would have gusted away in the wind. She could easily redirect the pressure which was gathering into her hand to kiss the ball goodbye, but patience gave way to pride and today the object resting in her palm had a different target.

A particular target, sitting tauntingly behind the bars of the tank, smiling like a cocky fool with his feet swaying just above the water almost excitedly as if he were a child.

Even Lee started to step away from Sakura in fear. "You don't have to be so scary now, Sakura. I w- will," he gulped, "p-protect…you, I-"

Anything else Lee wanted to say met a quick death on his lips as Sakura threw the ball at one of the most feared people in the ninja society. To everyone's momentary surprise however the ball did not meet the trigger that would drop the elder nin as expected.

No, instead it broke through the wind with force and a moment later struck its true target.

Water rocketed through the air and rained down upon anyone unfortunate enough to be within vicinity, soaking them from head to toe. Wiping water from their eyes the crowd looked up to see what had happened. The tank that had just been standing sturdy had exploded upon the force of impact, fragments scattering in every direction.

The part that was truly comical though, was the way a slack jawed Jiraiya just floated on down the small stream of water like a sailor who had just washed up on shore after being lost at sea for days.

His form stopped at Sakura's feet and she couldn't help but roll her eyes at his water logged form, the clown makeup that had once been perfectly applied to his face was now streaked and running. She was unaware of the disbelieving gazes that watched her, totally caught off guard by the small woman's strength. Lee was one of them, standing just off to the side, eyes widened and mouth agape. Neji on the other hand understandably looked as if it was nothing out of the ordinary.

The kunoichi bent down, making sure no part of her yukata touched the wet ground and looked Jiraiya in the face. "Please don't make fun of me or my sensei again." She gave him the most vivacious smile she could muster before giving him a sharp pat on his white, red, blue and tanned cheek.

Others might have thought it looked like a cute, light touch but for Jiraiya it was as slap if he'd ever felt one, and the man definitely _knew_ his slaps.

Sakura stood and began to walk away from the toad sage when a voice caught her attention, making her stop dead in her tracks.

"Ah, Jiraiya-sensei. You're all washed up."

The familiar masculine voice had Sakura opening her mouth slightly in awe as she turned in wonder to look at the approaching presence. The man wore an orange yukata that tied around the waist with a blue and white obi. His blonde hair that sat on the top of his head was still spiked but for once actually looked groomed. Large, knowing blue eyes looked down at his sensei disapprovingly.

"You shouldn't say such bad things about the old hag in front of Sakura," he shoved his teachers shoulder with his foot. "And don't even think about using my teammate as your next main character for Icha Icha."

Their eyes met and he gave Sakura a sheepish smile while scratching his head. "I'm a little late, aren't I?"

Transfixed, Sakura watched as Naruto approached her, stepping nonchalantly over the form of his teacher who still lay on the ground covered in water and still very much in shock behind him.

She hadn't expected him to show up so suddenly, let alone at all tonight. The impression she got from Ino was that there had been no sign of him in weeks and that most likely he would not be returning during her time at home. She had marked this week off as another missed visit for Naruto and herself to spend time together and resigned to think that maybe the next time they were in Konoha they would bump into each other.

She was glad to see him though, slowly making his way towards her, mindful of the deep puddles of water she had created along the street. Here was a familiar face that she had wanted to see and now that he was here, she couldn't stop the small smile from forming.

"Naru-"

"Naruto!"

A group of bodies rushed past Sakura, cutting her off. They came to a stop in front of her teammate and Sakura could see that she wasn't the only one surprised by his sudden entrance. The only not of course, was Neji. He preferred to stay in his original spot, watching the others silently on his own. Still standing by his side however, Tenten didn't hesitate to welcome the spiky haired boy back.

The others who had formed a group around Naruto, greeted him with warm familiarly, happy shouts and eager questions thrown his way.

Choji smacked the jinchuriki on the back, sending Naruto forward slightly from the force. "Welcome back, Naruto!"

The flicker of pain crossed the blonde male for a second before he straightened himself and gave a wide grin. "Thanks Choji."

"It's good to see that you are doing well. It's been a while since we've seen you," came Shikimaru's ever calm voice.

"Ah, Shikimaru don't sound so sad! I've missed you too."

Shikimaru scoffed. "Whatever."

"What the hell have you been up to Naruto? What took you so long?"

Naruto turned to look at Kiba. "I've been training a lot with the pervy sage," he glanced back at his teacher who was slowly picking himself up off the sodden ground. "He finally decided that we can come back for a little while and take a break so here I am."

"You've changed a lot since I last saw you, you're taller." Ino's eyes looked him up and down approvingly. "But I bet you're still just as stupid as before. Those kinds of things don't change so easily."

Naruto laughed awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. He had expected some kind of remark along those lines from Ino, and she did not fail to disappoint him.

Hinata shyly stepped forward, a slight blush on her face. The girl was still very much at the whim of her childhood crush as she still got nervous around him, her cheeks painted with a blush. And Of course he was still oblivious to it. Some things never change. "W-Welcome back Naruto," she said softly.

Naruto placed his larger hand on her shoulder, smiling down at her since she was a few inches shorter than him now. "Thanks, Hinata. You haven't changed a bit!"

Hinata's gaze traveled downwards to the ground in slight dismay. She knew he was referring to her stammering problem that only came way when talking to him. One day, Hinata promised herself, she would be able to talk to Naruto without stumbling over her words like a lovesick child. She would also remember not to come so close to fainting at the next friendly contact he gave her.

Sakura watched on as they continued to jabber happily with each other. It appeared as if nothing had changed in Naruto other than the slight physical difference. He still seemed cheerful as ever and lightly joked with the others, happy to be the cause of their laughter. Everyone was so excited to see him. It had been so quiet without their friend around.

There was one form however throwing off waves of jealousy and anger from beside Sakura. A bit startled by the unexpected contrast in the air and she turned to look at the source.

Lee's face was undoubtedly red with animosity and his shoulders shook slightly. "Why must Naruto appear out of all times when I am finally spending time with Sakura-chan?" he whispered almost menacingly to himself although Sakura clearly heard him. "I was so close to winning too!"

There was no doubt Lee felt Naruto a rival for Sakura's affections. After all Naruto was already Sakura's teammate ever since they were younger and that made the jinchuriki one step ahead of him from the start. Being that they were on the same team, Naruto and the object of his green tinted affection had spent a countless amount of hours together, the close knit relationship between the two members of Team Seven the largest road block of Lee's advances. He had hoped that during this festival, he could prove to Sakura just how strong and youthful he really was and maybe somehow convince her to date him.

Seeing as though he had yet to win Sakura anything in the couple of hours of being there, while the other girl's hands were filled with stuffed toys and objects of passion and virtue, was yet another setback on the pile for the bushy browned ninja.

The only redeeming factor Lee held on his side was the knowledge that there was little chance Naruto could win any of those games either. After all, not even he was able to and there was no possibility that Naruto was stronger than he…or even Sakura in this case.

Lee watched on in, what he believed to be, silent, unnoticed anger as almost their entire group continued to talk singly with Naruto. No one had greeted him in such a way, so why was it that Naruto was getting the special treatment. Even Sakura hadn't taken her eyes off of him and Naruto hadn't even said a word to her!

What the hell was going on?

Finally after some time Naruto's gaze did rise to meet Sakura's once again. He excused himself from the others and walked pointedly towards her, a thousand watt grin in place and never wavering. From what Sakura could see, he seemed relaxed as he approached steadily. She couldn't say the same about herself though because for some unknown reason she felt slightly nervous, the unwelcome but familiar fluttering of 'butterflies' in her stomach making themselves known to her once again.

Eagerly she pushed it off as her anticipation toward seeing her teammate after such a long period of time. Yep, that was it.

"Hey Sakura," Naruto greeted almost timidly. He had interacted playfully, easily falling into his goofy persona with the others but when it came to his teammate, especially Sakura, he tried to keep it somewhat serious, wanting to show her how much he'd grown in their time apart. He valued their relationship more than almost anything else in his life and more than anything her impression of him mattered now.

He wasn't sure how she would react to seeing him when he finally revealed himself. Although from the looks of it, he was already doing a lot better than Jiraiya. Naruto was skeptical though if Sakura would give him a warm welcome, yell at him for his late arrival or just ignore him completely. Sometimes she could be very unpredictable.

The smile she was giving him at the moment gave him a boost of confidence but he was still prepared for the worst.

Naruto knew it was better to be prepared than not for one of Sakura's 'friendly' pats on the back. But it didn't come.

"Welcome back."

She made no suspicious movements, instead keeping her hands at her side. Her tone was genuine in the way she welcomed him back warmly, no trace of anger or sarcasm lacing her calm voice.

In response, Naruto let himself relax. Looking down at his pink haired teammate he felt a jolt in his heart at the realization of just how cute she looked starring up at him with her emerald green eyes. She wore a nicely fitting yukata that purposefully seemed to be inspired by her hair color. Surprisingly, Naruto didn't think it was too much pink but he had a feeling it had to do entirely with the person currently wearing the familiar hue.

It looked rather good on her to put it quite frankly. Sakura looked like a mature young woman as she stood before him, nearly glowing.

Being back in Konoha enabled Naruto to see Sakura since they usually were not assigned missions together and for the most part Naruto was continuously training with Jiraiya anyway.

But meeting up, and at the festival of all times was like winning the lottery.

Naruto didn't see himself winning the lottery any time in the future though, but knew that if by some fluke he ever did, no jackpot would be worth the value of having the one he loved in his arms.

He wasn't sure how long Sakura would be staying, but knew that any time spent with her was a gift. Nothing could replace the swell of emotions that suddenly came upon him and finding he could no longer suppress the urge to hug Sakura, he reached out. The way she looked up at him so sweetly with a sense of innocence made his heart grow.

"Ah Sakura, I've mis-"

Smack.

Yes, some things would never change.

The blow Sakura delivered to Naruto was not enough to send him flying, only halt him dead in his tracks inches before his intended embrace could be given. He was still leaned forward, arms hung in the air on either side of her, eyes firmly shut yet he was still smiling, all be it a bit twitchy. His smile remained on his face even with her hand planted firmly against it. He'd be nursing one hell of a mark later, that was for sure.

But when Naruto opened his eyes to peer down at his teammate he would have thought she'd be looking up at him angrily. Instead, it looked as if she was going to cry.

"Naruto…"

His name left Sakura's lips as her hand fell to her side and she stepped into his embrace, letting her forehead rest against his chest. She wasn't used to reacting like this but Sakura knew that a big part of it was definitely due to the return of Sasuke. The mental battles she had with herself over why everything was happening so suddenly seemed to spill out uncontrollably in Naruto's comforting and familiar presence.

His aura was so pure and calming that at first Sakura tried valiantly not to let herself become overwhelmed by it. The wall she had been slowly building to try and forget the nerve wracking feelings Sasuke's presence had aroused in her seemed to crumble in an instant.

The stares and small whispers from the others were lost to her. Focused solely on Naruto she tried to draw upon some of his strength. Feeling completely drained and distressed by the emotional wreck she had completely become, Sakura buried her face into the fabric covering Naruto's chest, taking comfort in the familiar scent she always associated with her teammate and let his energy wash over her in a relaxing wave.

Sakura had not been able to speak with anyone over how she had been feeling in light of recent events; not entirely comfortable telling just anyone when they would most likely not understand anyway. None of her friends had ever experienced a teammate defecting, trying to kill them and then be faced with the return of said person. It was more than a little unnerving and not something she'd like to share with just anyone.

Naruto's comforting arms came down and embraced her, pulling her rattled form against his chest in confusion and worry. In that moment Sakura felt the safest she had been since returning to Konoha a few days prior. She laughed lightly at the thought of Naruto's arm's being her safe haven. This only seemed to confuse the ninja whose arm she was currently in more and she huffed another quiet laugh against her will.

She remembered how dismissive she always was with him as children, how annoying and foolish she though he was back when she would never have thought of showing him the light of day but now after growing and maturing together her feelings had drastically changed. She had watched him progress, struggle through so much pain and achieve such great feats with a determination she believed no one else in the world possessed.

Sakura had witnessed his evolution into the strong and proud man she was grateful to stand beside today and most importantly she had learned that his arms would always be there to lend her strength.

As they stood in their embrace, the solid stares from onlooker's prying eyes were quickly averted as fireworks began to explode into the dark sky above them. Even Lee who had been watching the tender moments between Naruto and Sakura unfold before him had to turn his eyes up in wonder at the colorful array of explosions painting the black canvas in elaborate splashes.

Only Sakura and Naruto seemed to be stopped in time, locked in an embrace that could not be broken and something so tender unspoken between them:

_I've missed you so much._

_

* * *

_**Authors Note:** Hello everyone, and welcome to the new year! 2010 was a good year for me and I'm hoping that 2011 will be even better. I don't have any New Years resolutions though :/ Maybe I'll think of something eventually. I hope you all had a safe and happy New Years also!

I wanted to give everyone who has reviewed a big thanks for all of your comments and suggestions :D I read all of them and remember them as I write, so thank you very much!

Until next time!_  
_


	4. Chapter 4

**Title:** Whispers On the Wind  
**Written By: **Dark Paine  
**Beta:** CripticWolf  
**Summary:** The thought of Team Seven reuniting was something Sakura would never have believed to be possible. But when Sasuke returns after defeating Itachi and influential elders end up dead, everything changes.

**Whispers On the Wind**

There was a time, when Sakura was younger, where she believed the world would meet an early end. An end brought about by a simple announcement that was made to name the ninja who were to become her future teammates. Something so simple should not have evoked such feelings of impending doom, but it had.

At first it was exciting. Waking up early that morning Sakura couldn't stop thinking about the possibilities of which teacher she would get and who would make up the essence of whichever team she was in. She had prayed vigorously for days, especially in the hours leading up to this moment that Sasuke's name would be called.

Not only would it be possible to then get close to the handsome and mysteriously stotic male, but she would also be the envy of countless other girls who had their eyes locked on him all the time. If Sasuke did indeed end up being placed on the same team as Sakura, she knew one thing for sure: she'd have a blast shoving it in Ino Pig's face.

Sitting in class almost proved unbearable for Sakura as she anticipated her name being called with shaky anticipation. It was Iruka's steady voice that finally spoke her name as he arrived at Team Seven. At once her heart jolted in her chest and began racing in tune to the butterflies, she refused to acknowledge them as a result of the nervousness she was trying to hide, in her stomach. This was it, her teammates would be revealed…

"…Uzumaki Naruto…"

Sakura couldn't help the way her head, seemingly on its own, collided with her desk in despondent dismay upon hearing that name. Irritation flared inside her and she cursed not only her bad luck but her foolishness for not seeing that this would happen sooner. She, Sakura Haruno, was to be teamed up with the most pathetic ninja Konoha had the misfortune to house inside its walls. She gritted her teeth as her annoyance spiked with said ninja's excited jump of joy.

But quicker than visibility during a sandstorm, any annoyance she felt was blown away, erased with ease and startling effectiveness as Iruka called out the other and final member to made up their 'squad'.

"…Sasuke Uchiha..."

Sakura had jumped up so fast that her chair toppled over behind her in her haste. The feeling of disappointment over knowing a certain blonde haired boy named Naruto was on her team disappeared in a flash. Now she knew that Sasuke, her all time crush, would be on her team and would be around her constantly.

Nothing could beat that!

In that moment of victory an excited adrenaline coursed through Sakura's young and naive veins as she had begun to plan out what she would do to get herself closer to the lone Uchiha and more importantly how to make him fall in love with her. Images of their future dates, even so far as their prospective wedding, flashed before her eager eyes. She had totally and effectively lost herself in a daydream while Iruka continued to rattle off teams and their names.

Sakura didn't care who the other people were stuck with or what team they were on however, all she knew was that she was officially Sasuke's teammate. Girls everywhere would be crushed as Sasuke swept her off her feet and engaged in daring missions at her side. She could even picture some of them trying to weasel their way onto her good side in order to spend time with the Uchiha themselves. Mentally she pictured herself scoffing at them and told them to beat it. They should know just as well as everyone else that Sasuke was _her's_…. or rather, would be.

At that time so thoroughly engrossed in her daydreaming she had barely recognized Naruto's presence or the way his blue eyes stared steadily at her while she made up scenarios in her mind about one of his most insufferable 'enemies' ever. She had no time for Naruto though, the most shunned and clumsy boy in Konoha. No, not when she had someone so intellectually teasing and broodingly charming as Sauske appeared to be.

Who would have thought back then that in the future she and Naruto would become the closest members of Team Seven? She certainly hadn't fathomed the idea when she had been assigned to the team she now cherished so and would protect with her all.

Sakura had no doubt that, as the two of them had grown closer; others had noticed the change for the way they acted in the past. As it was if anyone around them had been second guessing just how much Sakura had accepted Naruto's friendship, all they needed to do was look right at them as they embraced warmly.

She was not sure yet just what Sasuke's intentions were now that he was back on active duty but she would find out. Having experienced running into him before on different occasions, she had more than enough suspicions planted firmly in mind about him. Right now she was definitely not able to extend any amount of trust toward avenger, nor did she even want to. She didn't even want him in her sight at the moment.

When she looked up, finally, and stepped back from Naruto, she wiped the tears from her eyes with a minutely trembling hand. The man before her was more trusting than she and Sakura was fully aware of that; it was, something, which still to this day amazed her, Naruto's unwavering loyalty. Naruto was a firm believer in second chances.

Now that Sasuke had returned, she could just imagine Naruto trying to get close to him once again, a desperate attempt to rekindle and reform a friendship from long ago. It made Sakura shiver just thinking of the probability of Naruto letting his guard down in front of someone who he still, relentlessly and, in her mind's eye, foolishly considered a 'friend' still in spite of everything Sasuke had done to him. He was hopelessly optimistic, never one to let ill thoughts or notions bring him or those around him down in any way. She smiled sadly at the thought. Naruto was truly something else.

The danger Naruto could be inviting into his life with Sasuke being in such close proximity frightened Sakura more than she cared to admit. She knew that Naruto was fully capable, and able, of defending himself if need be, but would he really be able to fend of Sasuke in a true, full on battle? Would he even _want_ to?

That was something Sakura realized now, that she feared the most.

A reassuring smile appeared on Naruto. "Do you want to go somewhere and talk?"

His ability to 'forgive and forget', to lend himself so fully both mentally and physically to those he cared for with the same innocent positivity that so easily flourished when he was a child were such important pieces of Naruto that Sakura wanted nothing more than to protect it. That characteristic was something that made Naruto into the person that now stood before her, smiling so softly with concern in his eyes. The gentleness he possessed was something Sakura never wanted to see corrupted especially at the soiled hands of someone they had both trusted so in the past.

"Yes."

His larger hand grasped her smaller one as he led her away from the crowd that was still enjoying the display of fireworks above them. He was careful to lead her along a secure yet winding path, taking care to maneuver about where their contact wouldn't be broken.

Sakura realized as she stared at Naruto's orange clad back, that she would protect him even from Sasuke. Their teammate, who had run away from Konoha to seek a greater power from Orochimaru, had become corrupted during his long absence. Sakura knew first hand that he was not the same Sasuke from their younger days. She doubted that he was completely cured, a prime example being the way he treated Shino on his mission just a few days prior.

When Sasuke was younger, he had believed so strongly that he could do everything by himself, accepting no help whatsoever. He was a firm advocate in his own strength from a young age and thought himself to be invincible pushing his limits as far as they would go. He realized later on, begrudgingly, that there were times where he would need assistance though from what Sakura observed, but he never said it aloud.

She also knew that Sasuke would not think to use a teammate as bait. Since he was an Uchiha, he prided himself on his strength alone and if anyone were to be killed during a mission, it would only look bad for him and worse for his name. Even when Sakura suggested that he and Naruto go on ahead and leave her behind, he instead chose to protect her from the onslaught of attacks. Sasuke was a riddle, mystery surrounding his thoughts and contradictions dictating his actions.

She could not picture the onyx-eyed ninja, whose pride in his village had once been so strong, even allowing the passing thought of protecting a Konoha shinobi now. His whole energy and attitude had changed after all, altered into something she wanted no part of.

It was a deadly kind of toxin Sasuke possessed and Sakura didn't want it touching Naruto. She'd make sure of it. He was after all, too blinded by optimistic loyalty to be weary of the Uchilla.

Before Sakura knew it, she and Naruto sat silently atop the Hokage monument overlooking their bustling village. They watched their friends and comrades enjoying the rare occurrence of relaxation and fun with content smiles on their faces. From their vantage point, the fireworks that so efficiently captivated everyone's attention almost appeared to be going off just a few yards away from them. Sakura found the colors to be beautiful as they illuminated the dark sky. Splashes of color exploded against a backdrop of stars, bathing the village, the Hokage's past, as well as their forms in a volley of changing colors.

The crowds below were still bustling with vibrant life and Naruto enthusiastically pointed out all of their friends, starting with the most noticeable form of Choji, then moving onto the rest. A refreshing sense of calmness came over both of them as they sat silently and enjoyed the display. Sakura knew she should have been filled with elation and exhilaration at the sight before her and the atmosphere that surrounded the night but there were other matters at hand that held precedence over this moment.

Eyes down casted, Sakura looked at the tops of her feet as they dangled over the edge of the monument. "Why didn't you tell me about Sasuke?"

Even though Naruto tried to hide his anticipation, Sakura knew he was anxious to know what exactly had gotten her upset. Her question seemed to catch him slightly off guard but after a moment of silence he regained his composure and answered truthfully.

"I thought about telling you, I really did Sakura," he replied softly looking into her eyes with sincerity. "With everything that happened around the time, I wasn't sure if you wanted to hear what I knew was happening to him. I tried to tell you a little bit but every time I mentioned his name you looked like you were going to breakdown."

He released a small sigh as his eyes turned to look down at the village, sadness in his eyes. "I couldn't stand to see you hurting so I stopped trying to tell you. If I had known then that he would be placed in ANBU I definitely would have made more of an effort to tell you immediately."

So it seemed as if she wasn't the only one that was surprised at Sasuke's placement in Konoha now.

"You didn't know that he was going to be placed on the squad?"

Naruto shook his head. "From what I understood, Sasuke was placed in Black Opts only a couple of weeks ago. I heard about it while I was away. It was another reason why I wanted to come home."

Sakura's eyes narrowed at the blonde. "Have you seen Sasuke since you've been back?" She really hoped that he hadn't.

Again, Naruto shook his head. "I want to see how he is doing though before I leave. Baa-chan told me that he has a mission soon so I hope to meet up with him in the next few days."

"You met with Tsunade already?"

He gave her a cheeky grin. "Well yea, I wanted to get a little bit of information before I met up with everyone."

"Oh," she said in understanding with a small nod. Her gaze averted from Naruto's face to wander the sky as the fireworks continued to go off. "Do you know what kind of mission he's going to go on?"

"No." He raised an eyebrow. "But you should know that the hag wouldn't release that type of information Sakura."

Sakura scoffed lightly. "Well I never know what Tsunade will do these days. Who knows? She could have forgotten that it was secret and let it slip out."

Her scoff was met with a chuckle from Naruto before he replied with a shrug and said, "Well, she did tell me that his mission started next week…but that's about it. Nothing specific."

"Next week?" What were the chances that _she_ would be placed on the same team as _him? _ She was already beginning to speculate them based on her non present stroke of luck and it did nothing more than put a scowl on her face. From what Tsunade had said, the council was looking favorably upon Sasuke and wanted to see him improve in ANBU. Her sensei had refused to let Sakura take a break from the secretive squad. If the client that asked specifically for Sakura also asked for Sasuke, she wasn't sure what she would do. Her heart was already beginning to pound in her ears at the thought.

"Sakura?" Naruto shook her shoulder lightly. "What's wrong?"

She brought a hand to her forehead and massaged her temples, releasing a slightly aggravated sigh. "I just can't help but feel like I'll be stuck on the same team as him. It just seems weird that both he and I have missions next week. The way Tsunade was acting was somewhat strange too after my team and Sasuke left the room."

"Why were you and your team in the same room as Sasuke?"

"My team ended up saving his," Sakura answered quietly. "That's how I came face to face with him."

For some odd reason Naruto seemed to understand. There were no signs of surprise or confusion on his face. "Teme is still acting up, eh?"

Once again Sakura turned to look at Naruto in slight anger. "You knew about it?"

When Naruto nodded she continued. "For some reason no one will take him off active duty as punishment. Apparently they think he will eventually change his ways but it didn't seem like that will ever happen with the way he treated his teammate on the mission."

"What happened?"

Sakura took a moment for herself. She didn't exactly want to recall what had happened a few days prior, but if she were to tell anyone Naruto was the only one she would.

"I've never seen a person left in such a state like Susumu was. I've seen Susumu in battle and he's very skilled. Usually he comes back from missions unscathed and perfectly normal.

"With this mission though, he had so many wounds that if I didn't get there in time, he could have possibly died. Sasuke on the other hand only had a few scratches." She scowled at the bitter taste in her mouth as she recalled how emotionless and unapologetic he had been. "He didn't even flinch seeing his teammate lying there covered in blood. I've never seen a Konoha shinobi treat a teammate like that."

Her face twisted in disgust. "And when I learned it was _him_ I just got so angry. Naruto... if Neji hadn't been there I don't know what would have happened."

For a moment both of them sat in silence, the fireworks and hush of the crowd were a soft sonata in the distance.

Sakura couldn't guess what Naruto was thinking as she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. His face was calm and he seemed to be in deep thought. She turned her sight back to the fireworks and tried to enjoy the pretty display. The different designs and detonations were interesting but for some reason Sakura couldn't find the sight to give her any sense of joy or wonder. Normally people would 'Ooh' and 'Ahh' but she could not find it in herself to fake a fascination. After a while she gave up and let her mind go blank.

When a strong arm wrapped around her shoulders, Sakura couldn't help the small, startled gasp that escaped. She wasn't expecting the sudden contact but when she let herself relax, Sakura found the friendly gesture to be quite comfortable. Her head landed on Naruto's shoulder feeling his calming breaths brush lightly against her face and his heart beating in unison from beneath a solid chest.

"It must have been hard on you, seeing him again."

His words were laced with sadness as he looked down to let their eyes meet for a moment. For Naruto, Sakura was one of the closest people in his life and to see her conflicted and hurting pained him. He didn't want to see someone who he cherished so much in such a state of depression. He gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze and a small smile.

"Sasuke is someone who I believe is still figuring out what is really right and wrong. He experienced too many tragedies when he was younger, tragedies that no one should have had to face alone. When he left to train with Orochimaru, he was already in such a fragile state that he lost who he was. It was so painful seeing how corrupted he became during his training with Orochimaru, how skewed his thinking was… what he may think is right, is not something that Konoha will find to be true and vice versa."

Immediately Sakura's mind remembered how Sasuke had confidently stated that he went off to finish disposing the others as the reason for leaving the injured Shino behind. The way he saw no problem in letting his teammate be used as bait was something no shinobi of Konoha would find acceptable.

Someone like Orochimaru on the other hand, might just find it suitable. Even though the snake like man was once a member of Konoha, he had also defected many years ago as a means to gain greater power. Orochimaru's logic had probably no doubt passed down to Sasuke, complicating things further when it came to the fate of their former teammate.

"I'm not asking you to forgive Sasuke for anything he has done, Sakura," Naruto said firmly without hesitation. He would never ask that of Sakura. He wouldn't force her to try forgiving their teammate, it was much better that she came to terms with things on her own at the pace she wanted.

"What might be better… is that we try to consider that Sasuke is relearning how to become a good shinobi again. He has to learn that Orochimaru's way of thinking is not for the best interests of Konoha and that he must change."

His reasoning was plausible but did little to answer any of the questions swirling through her mind. Curious beyond measure, Sakura thought hard on the situation at hand, trying to piece together the fact with that same hawk like precision she was so often associated with. Was Sasuke really acting like that because he'd really forgotten what it was like to be a ninja from Konoha? How could they know if he wasn't doing it for other reasons?

The fact that Sasuke had to relearn something that had been so dutifully ingrained into them all their lives almost seemed to be laughable. He was someone with great skill that was unmatched by most. He even possessed the sharingan, a weapon that could copy anything instantly, and had already been through so much. How was it possible for him to forget his roots and need to relearn them?

With a deep breath Sakura forced herself to take a step back from the situation though and realized that in a way it really did make sense. Sasuke had been on such a long quest for power and revenge that there was no doubt that his mind had become twisted and he must know it. People who were usually obsessed with power did lose their minds and became crazy. Someone who was as talented and smart as Sasuke was no exception.

The real question was whether or not he liked or despised what he knew.

"Who knows? You might not see him for months and the next time he could be a totally different person!"

Oh Naruto… always the optimist. His enthusiasm and anticipation at the thought of Sasuke changing in the next few months, even in the slightest, made Sakura smile fondly. She wondered just who had taught Naruto to be so hopeful even for someone who seemed so lost. Maybe she would need to have a talk with that person? Get herself on the same joyous path?

But for the time being and the reality that Sakura lived in, she wasn't as confident as Naruto.

"If Sasuke makes any changes in his behavior it will only happen over a long period of time. The personality he has developed can't be changed even within a few months, Naruto."

Even with her reply, Naruto didn't seem to be swayed in the least. "Ah, but Sakura! Sasuke's true self is still there, I know it! It's just in hiding under his current bastard ways is all."

Sakura had to laugh lightly at that. "Maybe that's possible but from what I saw, his former self might take years to reappear."

She felt his shoulder shake beneath her head as he laughed. "Even if it takes a few years, that's still fine with me. Let's just have some faith in him Sakura. You'll see, it'll all turn out okay. After all, look what we've been through already…"

When he looked down and into her eyes again, Sakura was able to see just how genuinely he believed their teammate would return to his former, normal self. There was no doubt that right now Naruto would wait for their friend and teammate to come back to them for as long as it took, ever the friend of steadfast loyalty.

His eyes seemed to silently proclaim that while he would always be there for her, he would also remain hopeful for Sasuke. Even if everyone were to turn their backs on the Uchiha, Sakura knew that to Naruto, the thought would never even be considered. He would remain confident until the very end.

"I wish I could be as positive as you Naruto. I just don't know what to do or think of him right now."

Turning her gaze away, Sakura let her head find a more comfortable spot on her teammates shoulder. "Maybe it might be better if I think of him as a 'hopeless' and 'pathetic' child who doesn't know anything but to kill others and treat teammates like garbage."

Naruto sighed. "He _is_ a teme."

* * *

The pair returned finally to the group once the fireworks had ceased illuminating the sky and all that could be said in private between them was spoken. The others welcomed them back and had even suggestively poked some fun toward where they had gone, succeeding only in igniting a whole chorus of joking barbs toward one another around the entire group. There was no use lying so eventually Naruto told them the truth but left out what they talked about. "We were just catching up."

Ino and Neji were the only people who were not fooled but they didn't dare say it. Neji didn't much care to talk about such matters and Ino was sure to change the subject back to the fireworks display before anyone could pry further, effectively taking the spotlight off of Naruto and Sakura. It was one of the nicer things Ino had done for her pink haired friend and Sakura was grateful.

Having Naruto explain the situation in perspective from Sasuke's point of view didn't exactly change Sakura's feelings towards the Uchiha. Yes, she could understand that Orochimaru had brainwashed him and corrupted him in a way that might be irreversible. What she could not understand was the eerie feeling she got when she had looked at Sasuke let alone the daunting energy she had felt while in his presence.

Seeing him at the end of their mission was almost like when she had met him on the battlefield over two years ago. The only difference was two years ago when he had almost killed her, but this time it was Shino who almost died. Feelings of apprehension let alone being on edge would still remain with her no matter what, that she was sure of.

Was what she experienced firsthand from Sasuke was all that he had progressed to become? Before now, was he worse? Had he made any progress at all or was he putting on a face in front of the Hokage just to be able to go on missions?

Being able to tell Naruto everything that had been on her mind was the relief Sakura had needed and she felt the invisible weight of the burden dissipate as if physically lifted off her chest. She didn't feel as much anxiety as she did before and her somewhat fogged mind seemed so much clearer now that Naruto had helped to put some of her worries into perspective.

Shaking her head, Sakura tried to release the thoughts in her mind to flow in the slight night breeze as it swept past. Hopefully the wind would take her thoughts miles away and into a different country.

As they walked down the streets stopping at random vendors and games, Sakura couldn't help but glance up at Naruto's face. Upon closer inspection Sakura realized that he was proceeding to eye the bottle game that Lee had so pitifully failed at.

Facing the game, Sakura focused on the bottles that stood in a nice triangular stack. She couldn't stop the image of Lee's repeated failure from surfacing and she glanced at Naruto.

"I'm not sure if we should play this game. I don't think the owner has set it up fairly." She looked behind them to see Lee staring smugly at the game, arms crossed over his chest. It appeared as if he knew for sure that Naruto would lose and Lee would be ready at any moment's notice to celebrate the blonde's unsuccessful attempt.

He'd be damned if anyone other than himself were to give Sakura a prize.

"Give it a try, _Naruto_!" she heard him say in mock enthusiasm. She sighed.

"Naruto-"

"Don't worry Sakura, I'm going to win you the biggest stuffed toy they have," he cut her off. His confidence didn't surprise her; no matter what challenge Naruto faced he had faith in himself.

Sakura could only hope that Naruto wouldn't feel down when he came to realize the game was rigged. Shaking her head, she continued to watch as Naruto readied to throw the ball, already knowing the outcome to this unfortunate situation.

So when Naruto released the ball directly at the target with a cocky grin on his face, it took only moments for the ball to make contact and smash into the bottles which clattered to the floor in a brilliant burst of glass and dirt.

If there was anyone more surprised than Sakura, it could only have been Lee but she didn't bother looking at the bushy browed ninja, instead she turned to look at the blonde beside her in disbelief.

"How did you…" she trailed off.

Naruto looked proudly down at her. "I'm a shinobi Sakura! If I can't even accomplish something as easy as this, then I have no business being a ninja. Besides, if I'm going to be Hokage someday I should at least be able to defeat some dirty bottles"

He laughed and his face split into a wide grin faltering only slightly as he gave a suspicious glance to Lee. The smaller nin had the look of extreme disdain on his face.

It only seemed to grow as Naruto continued his winning streak for five rounds until he could not go on any further, effectively beating the game and now being able to choose from the larger animal prizes.

"Wow Lee, you suck," Kiba laughed hard, extremely amused at the situation. "You tried winning at that game earlier and lost every time! Naruto tries _once_ and wins." He snickered, angering the green clad ninja greatly. The others broke in with various laughs and chuckles of their own at Lee's misfortune.

"Honestly Lee, I'm glad that you're not on my team now," laughed Ino.

Tenten tried to defend her teammate. "Awe come on now guys, Lee is a great ninja."

Neji shook his head silently and began to walk away. "Let's go," he muttered.

It seemed as if even Neji, whom Lee openly looked up to, didn't even want to look at him because of his pathetic disgrace toward the unbreakable bottle game! A fierce growl escaped Lee as he watched the rest of the group walking away from him, all the while laughing. He turned back to the proudly smiling blonde man and his pink haired angel. He couldn't believe his beloved Sakura was still standing next to such a boastful man.

"What do you mean by that Naruto?" he yelled from behind them, causing the blonde to laugh loudly.

Naruto shook his hands in front of his chest in defense, "It's nothing to do with you Lee," he assured in slight confusion.

Before Lee could reply, the vendor came to the counter in front of Naruto. "Now what would you like?" he glanced to Sakura, "something special for your cute girlfriend there?"

"Uhh," Naruto gaped looking at Sakura's shocked pink tinted face before quickly turning to the vendor with a blush of his own and quickly supplied squeak. "She's not my girlfriend, just my friend!"

The vendor raised an eyebrow and leaned his face against his has as his elbow rested on the table. He pointed at them in consideration as he looked between the two closely. "I thought for sure that you were together."

Sakura smiled awkwardly. "No, we're just close friends who were once on the same team."

The vendor, thankfully, seemed to get the hint and stopped pestering them. "So what would you like now?" he said with a smile, his attention on Naruto.

Naruto let his hand come to his chin while he examined each of the large stuffed figures that hung from the vendors display with serious contemplation. There were easily twice as many choices at this stall compared to the others

There was a white horse that had large, goofy eyes, a green snake with an extremely large tongue sticking out, a hammer, something that oddly looked like meat, a fat yellow mouse with a wonky tail, a black and white dog, a grey cat that was missing an eye and, his favorite, a red fox hanging longingly from the tack filled wall.

His eyes lit up instantly. "That one," he said as he pointed to the stuffed animal he desired.

It didn't surprise Sakura when the fox toy was lowered down and placed into Naruto's eager hands; she'd guessed his choice before even he had. He turned to face her, bringing the toys head against his own with a cheeky grin and she couldn't help but smile just as wide.

"You're like twins."

Lee scoffed. "_Ugly_ twins."

He said it just loud enough for them to hear and Sakura laughed inwardly but at the same time she couldn't help but felt bad for her former 'date'.

"Don't worry Lee, there is always next time for you to win something." She tried to cheer him up. It seemed to have worked because almost instantly he perked up like a puppy who managed to catch sight of a treat.

"My dear Sakura you are right! There are plenty of games to play still!" Immediately he turned and marched away from them in pursuit of a stand he had yet to visit and would soon conquer. "By the end of the night I will have won you something of great excellence Sakura!"

She could only stare at his retreating form with slight hope for a quick accomplishment but Sakura idly wondered if she had just opened another can of worms. She answered her own question with a sigh. She'd feel bad if Lee wasted all of his money that he'd saved up from missions tonight trying, _and probably failing_, to get her something. With the way he had played all night, it seemed as if it might be inevitable.

A slight pressure against her chest caught Sakura's attention. Looking down she saw the oversized fox looking up at her, his large dark eyes staring imploringly into her own seemingly real. The tactic of drawing people in to buy the bigger animals lies in how cute they were after all. It was almost as if the toy was begging for her to hold it.

Sakura had to admit that this toy was indeed cute.

"I hope you can give this lucky guy a good home," Naruto spoke when their eyes met.

"This is for me?" she was slightly surprised.

He nodded his head and pressed the toy closer to her, a tender smile doing wonders to light up his already sparkling blue eyes. "Yup, I couldn't let you leave the festival empty handed now could I?"

He spoke softly still looking fondly at her as they continued to stare at one another. It was as if some invisible force was holding them in place, as if time had frozen to all but them.

She felt a blush race up her neck and after a moment, though it felt like many, Sakura was forced to look away from those cool burning pools. They held such intensity; such an emotion that she couldn't quite place that it was both heartwarming and unnerving at once.

Her arms came up to wrap around the large neck of the fox who's black eyes gazed steadily into her own and took a deep breath. Willing herself to look back up at her friend and teammate as he cheeks burned, Naruto just kept staring while his smile kept growing incredibly wider.

It wasn't often that Sakura was given a gift. In fact she couldn't remember that last time anyone had given her a gift other than her mother. Now to finally hold something in her hands let Sakura feel like maybe it wasn't so bad being at the festival. To top it off, this animal was the biggest out of anything the others had won.

She tried to tell herself that those were the only reasons this simple toy had managed to make her heart beat faster and stomach jump with affectionate excitement. That it had nothing to do with the now goofily grinning Shinobi standing in front of her. Her body was betraying her however and she glared inwardly as warmth spread through her bringing an equally shining, though smaller, smile out on her face to match that of her companion's.

Finally she looked back at the man who had once been nothing but a clumsy annoyance to her. How foolish she had been. As soon as eye contact reinitiated, Nartuo having kept his gaze centered upon her the entire time her delinquent mind had wandered, she gasped. A jolt of electricity raced through her like lightning across a dry desert in a rain storm and her mouth went dry as she came to a realization.

"Thank you Naruto," she said with a genuine smile, hugging the stuffed toy tighter to her chest.

Naruto shrugged bashfully. "It's the least I could do. We're only home for a few days and I figured you might want a little souvenir."

He started to lead her away from the stall and through the festival grounds. "And besides, he can keep you company when you're home and I'm not. Think of this little guy as me and vent to him if I'm not around."

She looked at the road ahead of them and stepped out of the way of an older woman who was running after her small child. As they walked Sakura quickly recollected herself and seeing the perfect opportunity to tease him asked, "When I'm angry at you can I punch him around?"

He let out a nervous laugh as he scratched the back of his head. His eyes crinkled into a nervous smile not quite sure how to take that. "I guess…just try not to beat him up too badly…"

She looked at Naruto from the corner of her eye. "I'm only teasing. I'd rather let my anger out on you instead and not on this cute little guy." She pinched one of the fox's cheeks.

Her joke caused another nervous laugh to bubble from her teammate. "You know, on second thought releasing your anger on something that really isn't alive is okay with me. I wonder where the others are…"

Anything was better than Sakura's punches.

Sakura frowned, not being able to see a familiar face in the waning crowds. "It is getting late. Maybe they went home?"

"I guess it's time for us to call it a night also."

When she turned to look at Naruto, Sakura almost jumped out of her skin in response to the unexpected visitor that now stood behind her friend.

Naruto's eyes narrowed at her. "What wrong Sakura?"

He watched as she raised a hand and pointed just past his shoulder. "Why don't you ask that pedophile?"

Following the direction, he turned and jumped slightly.

"What the hell sensei!"

Behind him stood Jiraiya who, as he stumbled over a combination of thin air and his own feet, proved to be quite drunk and who was still covered with smeared clown makeup.

"I finally found you!" he slurred as he swayed slightly, taking a swig of sake and grinning big as if finding Naruto was the most triumphant quest that he had ever endeavored to succeed at.

Naruto moved to place himself in between Sakura and his teacher just in case Jiraiya felt the need to spring forward and startle his teammate with a disguise attack. The last thing he wanted was an uncomfortable situation or worse, for Sakura to destroy both he and his teacher.

"Yea, you did. What's going on?"

"It is t-" he hiccupped and took another sip of the sake. "It is time!"

Naruto looked at his inebriated teacher in confusion. "Time for what?"

Sakura took a step back when she saw Jiraiya jerk forward and force Naruto into a close huddle with his arm. She couldn't hear exactly what he said into Naruto's ear but she did catch "special task" and "women" in the same sentence.

Jiraiya eventually released him and stepped back slightly. "Let's go!" he said gruffly in proclamation with a jerk of his finger in one direction and began to stumble away into another.

Naruto didn't budge however and instead turned to look at Sakura, a display of conflicting emotions crossing his face; confusion, regret, longing, annoyance.

"I should walk you home," he finally said resignedly and started towards her with a small yet disappointed smile. He clearly was not anticipating such an abrupt ending to the night.

There was a loud crash behind them and an unmistakable boisterous laugh that followed. Sakura did not even need to look to know who it was.

She placed a hand on Naruto's arm. "Don't worry about me, I'm a big girl." She signaled to the disastrous tornado clown currently unleashing its drunken blunder on the unsuspecting streets behind them with a grimace as another loud crash echoed down its length toward them. "Go help your teacher. I don't think he should be left unattended and he needs you more than I do."

Even though she was truthfully telling him that it was okay for him to go, he still hesitated. Ever the gentleman.

"But-"

"Just go Naruto." She turned him around and pushed him towards Jiraiya gently but quick and firmly. As soon as she could, Sakura turned so that by the time he realized what had happened she had already turned and made sure there was considerable distance between them.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." She waved him off.

Her pace quickened as she walked away until she knew without a doubt that Naruto had not followed her. It was better that he stayed with his teacher and escorted him to some sort of safe place, preferably away from all the women in Konoha. A drunken Jiraiya wandering around left no woman safe.

She frowned slightly. It would have been nice for him to walk her home though. Tonight was the first night they had been able to see each other.

Looking down at the fox in her arms she hit it over the head. "Dummy."

But there was always next time. Naruto said he would be in Konoha for a few days and her mission didn't start until next week so that was enough time for them. In fact, maybe she would see him tomorrow?

It would have been okay with Sakura if Ino had even stayed behind to walk with her. She looked around with slight hope to see a blonde woman but alas, there was no sign of her pig friend and so Sakura was undoubtedly left alone. She'd have to suck it up and walk home; she was a Shinobi after all.

As Sakura walked down the dirt road she could feel the people rushing past her, trying to gather their own belongings and break down their stalls. The festival was officially over and Konoha would return to the way it was before the sun rose in the sky.

She spotted a shortcut that she could take back to her own apartment and quickened her pace. Hopefully she would be able to escape the growing chaos with the new route.

Just a few feet after rounding the corner with her sights set on the corner of the building where she would turn down one moment the next thing she knew, there was a flash of yellow and she was hit in the face by something light and covered in feathers.

She dropped the fox in reflex and slapped the intruder out of her face. Turning to look as the chicken ran down the road, following close behind was a small boy who almost slammed into her and would have had she not plastered herself against the side of the building. The fox on the other hand, was not as lucky.

Sakura couldn't help but let out an aggravated sigh as she realized that it had been stepped on. "And today was going so well too."

She dusted herself off, plucked a few feathers from her hair and even one from the side of her mouth. Somewhat cleared off, she then bent to pick up her large gift. He didn't appear to be too roughed up, which she was thankful for, and then proceeded to dust him off as well.

After tucking him safely into her arms Sakura made it around the corner and away from the busy street. It was darker, only dimly lit by one lamp towards the other end but indeed it was not busy at all. She would be at the other side in no time. Completely unaffected by the creepiness of the dank alleyway, Sakura plowed forward. Before the chicken incident her mood had been serene, still buzzing with the adrenaline of the night, however now the only thing on her mind was getting home as she walked briskly. Almost there she chanted in her mind.

Ten steps into the alleyway however had her stopping dead in her tracks. A powerful presence let itself be known to her and her blood ran cold, eyes darting to spot the incoming intruder she knew was there with her. When the shadows didn't seem to budge and she could hear no movement, Sakura braced herself.

"I know you're here. Come out." She spoke with cold authority, not in the mood for games.

There was a small gust of air that swept past her before the vision of the open alleyway was blocked by a masculine chest. Instinctively she took a step back but was stopped when her eyes were violently pulled into the bright red that bore down at her.

Her mouth opened slightly as she was held by his gaze, transfixed by a mix of shock and chakra.

"What-"

She was cut off as his wrapped arm rose between them. The toy in her hands fell to the ground unbeknownst to her, forgotten while the sound of her heart beating filled her ears with spikes of adrenaline and alarm flashing through her veins yelling for her to move. But it was almost as if she was caught in his spell and couldn't move as his hand reached towards her.

Her sharp green eyes traveled with his hand, not letting it out of her sight. She knew the moment she sensed his chakra formulating she would need to figure out how the hell to get out of there.

Oddly enough though, there was no chakra that escaped his body.

Instead his fingertips brushed against her yukata, right by her neck before his hand ever so slowly retracted, leaving her numb. He brought his hand once again between them and to his eye level just so she could see what his purpose was.

There, in between his forefinger and thumb, was a small chicken feather she had failed to brush off only moments before. His expressionless gaze rested on the small object before he turned his attention back to her. Everything remained frozen.

"Hello, Sakura."

* * *

**Authors Note:** The one thing that I like about Naruto is that he never gives up on something that he puts his mind to, including Sasuke. For Naruto, Sasuke was pretty much one of the first people that paid attention to him (even though it was negative at first) and the bond that they had is something precious to Naruto. Ah~ Naruto's pure intentions are just so admirable.

Thank you so much everyone for your support as well as faves and alerts for this story, that really means a lot to me! :D I hope its enjoyable reading the interaction between Lee and Naruto and for those of you who would like to see a sparring match between the two, that is coming in a future chapter :D

Also, a **question:** I've been searching around everywhere for the answer but I continuously come up with mixed comments. Are the ANBU masks purely based on the 12 zodiac or are they random animals with no meaning behind them? If someone could tell me that would be great!

Someone had a question about which mode Naruto has learned while being away from Konoha and my answer to that is honestly I haven't decided yet xD There are some things in the original manga that I'm still on the fence at whether or not I will include in the story right now. Its a good thing my fabulous beta and I are going to have a nice long talk about this xD My poor beta. She is so good to me and my yapping about Naruto xD

Please review and let me know your likes and dislikes about this story, I don't mind constructive criticism at all and I do read what every review says. I enjoy writing this story and receiving feedback is fun for me. One thing that I am trying to keep to a minimum is the switches (indicated by the page breaks) but I'm not totally sure if its the right thing to do. Do you like many page breaks or few?

Until next time!


	5. Chapter 5

**Title:** Whispers On the Wind  
**Written By: **Dark Paine  
**Beta:** N/A  
**Summary:** The thought of Team Seven reuniting was something Sakura would never have believed to be possible. But when Sasuke returns after defeating Itachi and influential elders end up dead, everything changes.

**Whispers On the Wind**

Ino was extremely proud of herself as she walked towards the others who were seated at the Ichiraku. Her shoulders were back as she strutted down the dirt road in her full glory, hair swishing behind her as a bright smile graced her face.

Sitting down next to Choji, Ino smiled at the greeting owner, "One bowl of ramen please!" she said, holding her index finger up.

Only she could have made it possible to get everyone to disappear and leave Naruto and Sakura to themselves. It had taken some effort to push all of her teammates and friends away from the remaining members of Team Seven, but she had done it.

Ino could only imagine what the two were up to now as she rested her head in the palms of her hands, letting the smell of noodles and spices fill her nose. Choji and Kiba's loud bantering filled her ears from beside her, but that still didn't affect Ino's smile and self praising in her mind.

Maybe the two were walking home together? Or maybe having a romantic meal out, just the two of them? Or maybe…

She wouldn't let her mind stray that way.

Sakura, her poor and sad friend, could always depend on Ino. Ino was such a good friend after all and she wondered how Forehead might thank her later.

The owner came to stand in front of her and placed a steaming bowl of ramen in front of her, "Why don't you look happy tonight. Did you enjoy the festival?"

Ino nodded her head, "I did but I think one of my friends enjoyed it more than I did. You know, my pink haired friend?"

"Ah, Sakura?" he looked around but saw no sign of the familiar pink hair. "Where is she?"

Ino laughed to herself. "She's not here right now, more importantly she is spending time with a very special someone that I just happened to set up. You'll probably hear about it tomorrow."

The owner's eyebrows rose in understanding, "I see. Well, hopefully it will be good news by tomorrow." His old eyes crinkled with his smile before he went to greet another customer who sat down.

"I'm on my fifteenth bowl Kiba, you're never going to win!" Choji squeezed out between slurps of soup.

"Fifteen? That's nothing! I'll eat thirty by tonight while you'll be on the floor groveling in pain!" Kiba shouted as he raised his thirteenth bowl of soup with his mouth into the air to eat the remaining small pieces before slamming the bowl down and grabbing another that had just been placed in front of him.

Ino grimaced as she looked at the two buffoons beside her as they raced to eat as much ramen as their stomachs could hold. Her frown only worsened as she watched Choji gobble up everything in his bowl rapidly with chopsticks and a splash of broth landed only a few inches from her.

She would never understand these two but they should know not to get anything of theirs in her food. If they had a death wish then maybe they would let their disgusting broth into her own soup or maybe even land on her delicate hands.

Ino wouldn't have to worry about anything like that happening from her left side because Neji and Tenten as well as Hinata sat there. They of course would never eat like animals in public unlike a certain duo.

Just as she separated her chopsticks, Ino paused for a moment and looked around. Choji and Kiba sat to her right. She turned in the other direction and still only saw Neji, Tenten and Hinata enjoying a bowl of ramen. Something was missing and her eyes squinted as Ino tried to remember just who was missing…

Lightbulb.

"Where the heck is Lee?" she said, looking in every direction to try and catch some sort of green but found none.

Everyone stopped eating and looked at her, shrugging their shoulders before continuing to eat.

Ino growled. "That bastard better not interrupt Naruto and Sakura!"

If that green goblin did, Ino knew that Sakura would never give her any sort of recognition for all she had done for her.

* * *

Oh how Sakura wished that her friends had not left earlier than she. If they hadn't, she probably would not be pinned to the spot where she was standing now, eyes locked with Sasuke's.

This man before her was unpredictable, as he gave nothing away as he stared straight into her eyes, almost as if looking into her soul. She couldn't tell if he was angry, happy, sad, about to kill her or if he just wanted to be cocky and intimidate her.

Sakura wouldn't let him get under her skin this time and somehow managed to find the courage to glare back at him instead of looking pathetic. She would make sure to hold her ground and not back down this time. If she wasn't able to, Sakura wasn't sure how she would be able to look at herself the same way again and still call herself a ninja.

She willed her heart to stop beating rapidly and held her breath as it almost looked like he would take a step forward. She watched him intently just in case he wanted to pull something on her. It just so happened that if he did, no one would be able to see since they were in the empty alley way.

"W-What are you doing here, Sasuke?" she cursed herself for stammering but pulled herself together. "It's not like you to indulge in events like these."

He cocked his head slightly to the side, a small, almost unnoticeable smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Really, Sakura?" her name sounded like dripping poison. "I never said anything about 'indulging' in these festivities." He eyed her up, taking notice of her pink yukata before settling on her gaze once agian.

The way Sasuke looked down into her eyes made Sakura unconsciously swallow. The deep onyx seemed to hold a sense of deadly play.

"Then what are you doing here in an alleyway, out of sight? If you don't expect me to find this suspicious Sasuke, you're wrong." Her voice held more strength that she was determined to hold on to.

The feather that was held between Sasuke's fingers twirled. "Suspicious?" his eyebrows raised, mocking her accusation as he watched the feather move back and forth. "I was merely looking for something."

Sakura kept her eyes on his face, sensing the slight darker change in the air. "And did you find it?"

She waited for him to reply but it wasn't as quick as before. The air around them stilled and it almost appeared as if the alleyway as becoming darker than it already was.

Then finally there was a small chuckle. "Yes, and just before it was able to get away too."

Sakura could feel the adrenaline rush through her veins when their eyes locked, her body preparing to counter any close range attack that Saskue would deliver. She had no idea of how Sasuke's taijutsu had developed but that was no concern. Having a lot of missions and specific training in taijutsu, Sakura was confident even now that she could make it out of this alleyway alive. Whether Sakura could take Sasuke down completely was a different matter.

It appeared as if Sasuke was going to step closer but the sound of his foot brushing against dirt stopped halfway. She had begun to raise her arms in a defensive stance when something flashed in his eyes. It was the first time that his eyes actually moved past her to stare at something that appeared to be more important.

In a flash, the impending doom Sakura had believed was coming her way was suddenly gone. A small amount of dust kicked up from where he once stood and blew past her, eyes boring down at the spot in front of her.

The sound of footsteps behind rang in her ears, and would reach her in seconds. Sakura's mind began to race, processing the kind of defensive attach she would be able to deliver.

It was Lee who then rounded the corner as he stopped mumbling to himself and looked at Sakura. He didn't seem to be affected by her intense gaze and fighting stance. "Finally, I have found you Sakura!"

A gush of air escaped her lungs and Sakura let herself relax. Lee was one of the last people she could have imagined to round the corner. In her mind she thanked him.

"I have finally done it my lovely Sakura! I took your words to heart and kept trying every game, even when they were closing down, and I have come back victorious!"

He extended his hand that held a small container with something green in it.

Finally able to relax, Sakura looked at the prize and then at Lee. "What is it?"

"It is a small gummy-like toy that has a heart at the end of it. You can whip it around and it will stick to things! Isn't it amazing?" Lee's face broke out into a bright smile, waiting nervously for Sakura to respond.

"Wow, thank you Lee. That is so sweet," she tried to sound happy and excited but the words just didn't come out as so even though she forced a smile on her lips. She took the gift in her hand lightly and stared down at it before something caught her eye.

Slowly floating down towards them was the small chicken feather. This time, Sakura could not find the strength to rip her eyes from it and watched painstakingly as it floated down to rest on the container that held her new prize. She bore down at it, wishing the feather would disintegrate in flames but it did not happen.

"What is that Sakura?" Lee asked as he reached to the side of her, a hand resting lightly on the kunoichi's arm.

Out of the corner of her eye, the color red caught her attention. Giving into the distraction, Sakura quickly put her hands on the oversized fox that had been resting at and lifted it up lightly before Lee could.

His eyes looked between Sakura and the toy, a sad expression developed on his face.

"Did Naruto win that for you?" he asked almost tepidly.

She nodded slowly.

Lee fell to his knees in the dirt and bent his head. "I have failed once again! I was not able to win you something worthy Sakura!" He almost sounded like he was crying and Sakura was slightly taken aback.

She too fell to her knees and tried to comfort Lee, everything that had been on her mind before was quickly washed away. "No, that's not it at all Lee. I love your prize. Look."

Sakura leaned the large fox against the wall before she grabbed the small sphere in her hands and opened it. Taking the green gummy heart out, she let the slightly sticky texture roll in her hands before grabbing the end of it, which had a small circle to grasp onto. With the slight flick of her wrist, she let it flight around in circles between them before she let it slap against the brick wall where it stuck.

She looked between the heart and Lee, smiling brightly into his teary eyes. "This is a lot of fun Lee! I'm going to play this all night. I can do a lot more with this than a silly fox toy." She insisted.

He seemed to brighten at that. She didn't miss the glare full of daggers he gave the defenseless stuffed toy before picking himself off the ground. "That is very true Sakura! What can you do with a stuffed toy other than look at it? Nothing!"

Sakura begged to differ in her mind but she would let Lee think that way in order to make him happier. She rose to her feet also, placed the green gummy back into its container and picked up the red fox. It was late out now but she didn't want to just leave him there, she knew if she did he would get upset once again.

"Would you mind walking me home Lee? It's getting rather late…"

"Of course my dear Sakura, I would love to!"

As long as Lee was happy, Sakura wouldn't mind the company home even though she knew full well that he would talk incessantly all the way back.

* * *

It wasn't until twelve in the afternoon that Sakura woke up. She could no longer ignore the loud knocking on her door as she sat up groggily and rubbed the sand from her eyes with a yawn.

"I'm coming," she called meekly as she made her way to the door, stumbling over a pair of shoes along the way.

She hadn't gotten much sleep last night after Lee dropped her off. They had talked a lot about nothing on the walk back and Lee continued to do so as they stood outside of her door. An hour into that conversation, Sakura had to stop Lee from continuing onto another story and promised that she would get together with him another day because at that moment she was so tired.

It was only after she insisted that she loved her gift more so than the fox that Lee took his leave. A bright smile stuck to his face until he was out of sight.

Although she had become tired from talking with Lee, it seemed as though the first step into her own apartment had woke her. She let herself lean against the closed door with a sigh before finally locking it and moved away.

Sakura had changed and sat in bed next to the oversized fox. The emotions that had temporarily lay dormant swelled inside once again in a fierce storm that she could not ignore.

In her mind she tried to contemplate all the reasons that Sasuke would be allowed out to enjoy the festival as all the others but something just didn't click. He was still, after all, under strict supervision and it wouldn't be like Tsunade to allow someone like him out and about freely.

Sakura knew there had been no one watching him, she had not sensed any chakra close by when there should have been since it was only she and him in a small alleyway.

Hiding in the darkness of the alley like some sort of shadow also emphasized, in Sakura's brain, that Sasuke had indeed been out without his guard's knowledge. Disappearing just as Lee rounded the corner was another suspicious detail Sakura had noted. That would mean the only people who knew he was feely walking the streets was herself and Sasuke. He was skilled enough to pull something like that off without anyone knowing.

But why had he shown himself only to her? Was he trying to tell her something in a very weird and almost terrifying way? Did he want to fight her for some reason or just intimidate her? It wasn't unlike him to want to do something like that.

Why not appear in front of Naruto though and leave her totally out of it? They had been much closer to each other before Sasuke had defected.

She had stewed silently in her bed for a few hours thinking of all the scenarios that could have taken place or what might happen in the near future as well as the reasons behind Sasuke's sudden appearance. Sakura's thoughts had only stopped when she felt her apartment becoming eerily quiet and almost suffocating. It was then that she turned over and forced herself to fall asleep.

Reaching the door, Sakura brushed the hair out of her eyes with one hand as the other unlocked the door. Opening it slightly she peered around the corner and was greeted with two large blue eyes and blond hair.

"Good morning Sakura!" Naruto greeted from behind the door. One of his large hands came to rest on the doors edge as he began to slowly push it open.

"Good morning," she said, still a little groggy. Stepping back slightly she let Naruto open the door to come inside, and watched him close it behind him.

She watched him observe her for a moment as his head slightly tilted to the side. He glanced to the clock that hung on the wall behind her. "Did I wake you? Maybe twelve is too early…"

She shook her head. "No, it's okay Naruto. I needed to get up anyway. What brings you here?"

"Are you sure? You look really tired Sakura."

She nodded before walking towards the kitchen. "I'm fine. Do you want anything to drink?" Orange juice looked very appetizing right now, especially since it was the only drink in her fridge.

"No I already ate," he called from the other room.

After pouring herself a glass of the remaining orange juice, Sakura made her way out of her small kitchen and into the other room to sit down at the small table also. "So what's up? Did everything go well last night?"

He nodded as she took a sip of her drink. "Yea, I was able to drag the pervy sage back to my place. Hes still snoring loudly on the ground." He shook his head. "My back is killing me though from lifting him."

She laughed slightly as he rubbed the small of his back. "Well at least he isn't terrorizing all the young women on the streets now."

His laugh was loud but not disturbing to her ears. "Sorry about that, the pervy sage can't resist beautiful women."

Sakura's eyebrows rose but didn't respond. Instead she took another sip, letting the cool liquid slide down her throat.

"How about you, did you make it back okay? I'm sorry I had to leave in a hurry. I wanted to walk you home." Naruto looked troubled. He still wasn't sure if he had made the right decision or not last night.

Placing the empty glass off to the right on the table, Sakura folder her arms in her lap. "I was perfectly fine last night Naruto, nothing to worry about. I'm glad you took your teacher home. Like I said, it's better that he's off the streets. And look," she pulled a small sphere out from under the table. "Lee even won me something."

Naruto looked at her in question before lightly taking the sphere from her hands. Opening it, he looked down before recognition crossed his face. "These are so much fun!"

It would only be Naruto who would enjoy something like that or even knew the gummy 'toy' existed. Sakura wouldn't be surprised if Naruto and Lee shared some of the same interests in things like this.

He began swinging the gummy heart around with his finger, "Look Sakura, it sticks to stuff!" he slapped it down on the table.

Sakura could only watch as he slowly pulled back and the gummy too began to unstuck itself before whipping back at him due to the resistance. "I know Naruto, and I made sure to tell Lee that also or else he might have cried."

"Oh, so it was like that last night?" he placed the gummy back into its container and handed it back to Sakura who put it on a shelf behind her. "He walked you all the way home?"

She could hear the regret in his voice. "Yea, it was alright. We talked a lot about…well I can't exactly remember what but it was okay."

He nodded silently and unconscientiously scratched his head. His downcast eyes slowly looked up and a smile appeared. "I know what prize you enjoyed the most though."

He pointed to her bed where the large red fox sat and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Yea, he kept me company last night."

They chatted lightly about the festival and Naruto kept teasing her about the stuffed fox being the best part of her night which she didn't exactly deny. She wouldn't let him get too high and mighty however and so she knocked him down a few feet slightly but never to harm him. They both ended up laughing for much of their conversation until Naruto glanced at the clock.

"It's almost two Sakura! We need to go meet Kakashi!"

She looked at him quizzically. "Why do we have to meet Kakashi?"

He stood abruptly. "Kakashi and Gai are going to have an 'epic' training session and he said he wanted us to come watch! I haven't seen Kakashi in a while so this should be great!"

Naruto helped Sakura to her feet and noticed that she was still dressed in pajamas. A faint blush stained his cheeks. "I'll be waiting downstairs while you change." He moved to walk towards the door and when he was halfway through he turned to look at her again. "Don't take too long Sakura, we don't wanna miss this!"

With that, he left and Sakura begrudgingly decided it was time for her to get dressed.

"I have waited for this moment for far too long, worthy opponent!"

"Uh-huh."

"Today will be a glorious day to test our abilities against one another, eternal rival!"

"Hn. The weather is alright."

One bushy brow rose, "Are you intimidated Kakashi? I won't go easy on you!"

With one hand in his pocket, Kakashi held his favorite Icha Icha book in the other and continued to read. Gai continued to jabber on unremittingly in the background on the other side of the training grounds.

This was how both Sakura and Naruto came upon the two teachers, Gai flexing flawlessly on one end while Kakashi slouched nonchalantly on the other. No matter how many years had passed there were just something things that would not change and that included the never ending rivalry between Kakashi and Gai.

"Kakashi-sensei!" called Naruto with a wave of his hand.

The ever bored looking teacher shifted to look at them, his revealed eye focused on the approaching duo. "Well if it isn't Naruto and Sakura. I thought you'd never get here."

The pair came to a stop in front of their teacher who still had not put down the Icha Icha Paradise book.

"I'm surprised we made it here after you Kakashi-sensei. Usually we're the ones waiting on you." Naurto crossed his arms in amusement, having remembered all the times Kakashi had been late to train them.

Kakashi nodded, "That is true…" His voice held no guilt.

"Don't worry Kakashi-sensei, I forgive you!" Naruto slapped his hand against his former teachers back. "I'm here after all, aren't I? And I even brought Sakura along."

"I'm glad both of you could come, hello Sakura," he greeted the pink haired kunoichi, who returned the smile, before his eyes darted around them. "There should be one more person coming. Where is he…?"

Sakura glanced at Naruto in slight confusion. She thought the audience to this 'epic' and 'historic' battle would only be she and Naruto.

Her blond friend shrugged his shoulders.

"I am here my youthful teacher!"

Three pairs of eyes darted to the opposing side at once to watch as a green figure ran vigorously towards Gai.

"Lee! My most treasured and youthful pupil! Finally you have arrived to see me defeat the old silver crow!"

Naruto and Sakura snickered at the nickname while Kakashi cleared his throat, finally placed the Icha book into his vest for safety and cracked his knuckles.

"Yes Gai-sensei! I know you have waited for this moment for many years, I would not miss it for anything!" It almost looked as if Lee would run straight into Gai's arms for a hug but instead he too stopped in front of his teacher.

Sakura could have sworn that both Gai and Lee had forgotten about them. With the way they were staring at each other, it seemed as if stars had appeared in Lee's eyes while Gai let the admiration wash over him. She wondered just how Tenten and Neji put up with them.

She glanced at Kakashi and was silently grateful that he didn't act in such a way with any of them. She probably would have vomited in disgust on many occasions if he did.

"Ya, Kakashi-sensei, I'm starting to feel bad for Gai. I'm not sure he can win against you," said Naruto as he too looked on slightly disturbed at the almost identical duo.

"I wouldn't count Gai out of anything." Kakashi began to stretch his muscles gradually and almost sloppily. "He is a strong adversary and should not be underestimated."

Sakura nodded. "Gai has sent many ninja to the hospital. I've treated most of them and the damage they incurred was not something random or small."

"Oh," Naruto let the word trail off.

The praises and talks of 'youthful vigor' continued on for a couple of minutes until Lee finally looked in their direction. He saw pink, excited recognition crossing his face before he enthusiastically turned to his sensei.

"I will be rooting for you Gai-sensei! I must go now to greet my dearest Sakura-chan," Lee stated cheerfully to his teacher, a closed fist held high.

Gai chuckled. "Of course! You must go and see that Sakura is taken care of. I know you will protect her from any impending doom if it should occur! Go now to your youthful loved one!"

The trio watched as Lee gave one last high five to his teacher before he ran towards them at full speed. He could probably bust through a building at the speed he was going.

"Hi Sakura! It's wonderful to see you," he said with a great big grin on his face. Sakura stepped back slightly before he got too close and nodded her head, hoping he wouldn't try to hug her.

There was a cough.

Lee looked at the source and his demeanor dropped with a scowl. "Hello…Naruto."

As always Naruto was oblivious to Lee's snarky attitude. "Hi Lee! It's great to see you here. At least someone will be cheering on Gai."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It looks like it's about to start," cut in Sakura before any sort of 'fight' could break out.

The two older men stood yards away from one another on the training grounds. A small gust of wind blew past, kicking up some dirt before settling back down. Not a word was said between the two, all the noise was coming from the two thunderous cheerleaders from the sidelines instead.

"Eternal rival," began Gai as he appeared to almost puff out his chest, "today we will see just who, between us, the stronger and more dangerous ninja is!"

"Did you say something?"

There was a growl. "Your revolutionary reactions always piss me off Kakashi! Stop being so hip! In fact your cool tactics will also end today!"

It was then that Gai demonstrated a small amount of his flexibility and strength, but in the most flamboyant way possible. The grandioso effect wowed even the three spectators, two of which looked on with budding interest in the furry browed opponent of their teacher.

Kakashi of course looked on bored. He was almost half tempted to whip out his Icha Icha Paradise book to finish reading the interesting…predicament the female lead had found herself in.

"Let's do this!" Cried Gai before he charged.

"You can do it sensei!"

The green ninja turned slightly before propelling forward, a large stream of dust and rock kicking up behind him. This kind of familiar speed and behavior was how Sakura was able to figure out just who was approaching. Only Gai and Lee ran in such a rapid and dramatic way.

The anticipation grew in Sakura and she watched Lee's teacher charge for her own. Her heart began beating faster in her chest, and only worsened when he did not budge.

"Why isn't he moving?" she spoke aloud.

"I bet he's got some amazing new trick or technique that he's going to show off!" suggested Naruto, pumped to see his teacher in action for the first time in months.

"My sensei will surely beat yours, new technique or not!"

"Yea right Lee, Kakashi has this in the bag."

"What?"

"You heard me bushy brows!"

"Do not insult me in such a way, Naruto. Especially not in front of my dear Sakura! You haven't changed at all."

"Yea, whatever."

"Look!"

Both of the male ninja looked to see what Sakura was pointing to.

"What is he doing now?" Naruto complained, looking on in disbelief.

Lee laughed. "Is _that_ your sensei's secret technique? Holding up his hand?"

Ah yes, there was Kakashi, in the middle of the training grounds standing as still as a statue while holding one hand up. The charging bull, also known as Gai, was within mere feet of Kakashi now and Sakura knew that her childhood teacher would probably be stomped on. He was a goner.

"Stop."

There was no sign of movement from Kakashi but the same could not be said of Gai. Just before the green bullet reached the silver jounin, he spun to the side on the balls of his feet. The dust cloud engulfed the two fighters before a large gust of wind blew it away.

"Gah, what the heck was that for Kakashi?" wailed Gai. "The battle has only just started!"

Kakashi shrugged. "I just thought of one last small competition before we settle things."

Gai narrowed his eyes. "This isn't some sort of trick?"

Kakashi shook his head and Gai relaxed his posture.

"We've already done running competitions as well as swimming, pushups and sit-ups. What do you have in mind this time, hmm?" The dark haired ninja rubbed his chin in question. Deep down he was suppressing his anger for being caught off guard by another one of Kakashi's cool techniques. Rubbing his chin would suppress what Gai really wanted to release and at the same time would give him a trendy appearance. It was perfect.

"You're student," Kakashi pointed to Lee, who's eyes widened, thinking he had been caught picking his nose for a moment, "versus _my _student."

His extended finger landed on Naruto.

"Me?"

Sakura couldn't help but look at the blonde in disbelief and then back to her teacher. "Kakashi, is this another way of getting out of a competition with Gai?" she asked almost angrily.

"What's wrong with another small competition between rivals just before the big finale?" Kakashi's innocence didn't fool the pink haired kunoichi.

"What do you mean small-"

Sakura's words were quickly smothered by Gai's booming voice. "That sounds perfect! Not only will it show who is stronger between our two students, but who was the better teacher as well!" With strong hands on his hips, Gai turned to his student. "What do you think Lee?"

Ever the enthusiast to show off to Sakura, Lee quickly agreed. "That is a brilliant idea Gai-sensei, I would love to beat Naruto in a match!"

"Beat me? Who says you are going to be anyone, Lee?" Naruto scoffed and began to stretch his arms.

"Wonderful Lee!" Gai held up his thumb. He was so proud of his student and could barely hold his emotions in check. Not only would the youthful rivalry between Lee and Naruto be settled today, but the one he shared with Kakashi would be as well.

Kakashi clapped his hands together. "It's settled then."

* * *

My beta has been busy for a while so this is not 100%. I figured I should upload it though because I've had a few PM's about it aha. Thank you all so much for your support!

I've been absent from this site for quite a while. Reason being is I finished college and moved to South Korea to work. It's something I've worked towards for over a year and I finally arrived in August ahaha. I've also gone through some personal stuff (not really exciting or thrilling) but now I'm in a really good place and enjoying life. This winter vacation I will even take a trip to Japan.

Right now I am living the life I want to and traveling as much as I want...if I can afford it of course xD

For my loyal readers, I really appreciate that you have stuck with me all these years. Don't worry, I'm not going away forever, just updates will probably remain sporadic.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and hopefully I can have the next one out soon!

**Dark Paine **


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